Rescued
by LittleGinger1216
Summary: After Samantha was rescued from the woods by the rugged Daryl Dixon, her life during the apocalypse changes completely. Changed rating to M, for future chapters. CURRENTLY REVISING OLD CHAPTERS & UPDATING NEW CHAPTERS. WILL POST UNDER NEW STORY ON MY PROFILE, THIS ONE WILL NOT BE UPDATED.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own the Walking Dead, only Samantha.

This chapter is very short, I'm just trying out new things. I have so many ideas tumbling around inside my brain that I decided I need to try and get some out! Thank you all for reading, and feel free to favorite, follow, or review!

The smell of rotting flesh filled the air. That's the only thing I could ever smell. The dead corpses stumbled around the woods, and I watched them from my tree branch. I had come out here in search of food, whether it be something that I would have to kill or something that I could forage. I just needed something to eat.

A light rustling sound came from the bushes down below, and I quickly pulled my gun out, ready to shoot. A little squirrel ran out of the bushes and I put my gun down. If I shot that, the bullet would probably make the poor thing explode and it wouldn't be edible.

A quick movement caught my eye, and I looked down to see the squirrel lying dead in the leaves, an arrow sticking out of it. "What the hell?" I muttered. A tall man with short shaggy brown hair and a cross bow slung across his broad back walked out from behind a tree and went and pulled the arrow out of the squirrel.

He dropped the dead body into a small sack he was carrying. He looked around the forest for a little bit before walking off, and I quietly slid down the tree and followed him. I followed him for a good while until I started to realize that the environment was similar. He was taking me in circles!

"What do yeh want?" His voice was gruff and his accent was thick. I cleared my throat and stood up straighter, trying to make myself seem tougher than I was actually feeling.

"I wanted to see where you were going with that squirrel." He scoffed.

"That ain't none of yer business. Yah need to go on yer own way, I ain't got time for yer shit." He turned around and walked off. I continued to follow him.

"Listen here, I won't hesitate to take this arrow and shoot yah in yer god damned head. So turn back around, and mind yer own." He was getting pissed now.

I hesitated for a minute, but then called out, "I'm just hungry. I'm sorry that I had to be so stalkerish, but I just saw that squirrel and I'm dying for some food." He eyed me cautiously before clicking his tongue.

"C'mon girl. Let's go." He said jerking his head.

"You mean it?" I ask joyously.

"If yah want to go, then shut up and start walkin." He barked. I followed him all the way back to a small campsite. There was an RV and quite a large group of people.

"You have a whole camp? I thought that maybe it was just you!" I exclaimed.

"I never said that. C'mon." He demanded.

A loud voice then burst through the air. "Hot damn, baby brother! Yah left to go get food and yah came back with this hot piece of ass. Good job. Maybe yah weren't as gay as I thought yah were." The sound was hickish as hell, and it was mocking. The man was larger than his brother, both in stature and build.

"Leave her alone, Merle. C'mon girl." I then decided to speak up.

"I have a name you know. It's Samantha. You never told me your name." He rolled his eyes.

"Daryl Dixon." His name fit his appearance. Rough and so very country. I smiled. I liked that name. A man stepped in front of us, and I backed up quickly. He was in a worn pair of jeans and a brown shirt with a badge on it. He was a cop before all the shit went down apparently.

"Who the hell is this?" He demanded, and I felt nervous. What if he made me leave?

"This here's Samantha. Found her out in the woods. She was all alone, looking for food." Daryl sounded irritated, like he didn't want to deal with the cop's shit.

"So you just thought it would be okay to bring her here without asking anyone else? She could be dangerous!"

"Shane, calm down. Look at her, let's just give her a chance." A tall, slim brunette came over, placing her hand on his arm. I assumed they were married.

"My name is Lori Grimes. Ignore Shane, that's what everyone else does. And make yourself at home." She said, gesturing towards the campsite that had an assortment of people in it. I smiled to myself.

Home.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own the Walking Dead, only Samantha.

Everyone at the camp was very welcoming, except for Shane and Ed. As it turns out, Shane is not married to Lori. She was married to his best friend, and he was shot in the line of duty, leaving her and her young son Carl behind. Ed was Carol's husband, and he was an asshole. He leered at me when I walked past, along with every other woman in the camp.

Merle was a pervert, but I actually didn't mind being around him. And I sure as hell didn't mind being around Daryl, because even though he would never talk to me, he was sure nice to look at.

The women were all very accepting of me, and I enjoyed their company. Amy was my favorite to be around. She was so young and easy going. I related well to her considering I was only twenty one. Her sister, Andrea, was very high strung, but I still liked her. Carl and Sophia were very sweet kids, and I liked to play with them near the water during the day and then color with them at night.

After staying at the camp for almost a month, I became very attached to almost everyone, but mostly the Dixon brothers. Merle stopped being so sleazy around me, and he almost seemed to respect me. Daryl made my poor heart pound every time I came near him. I had such a crush on him.

He was strong and gruff. I loved his cut off shirts so I could see his delicious arm muscles. He wasn't the type of guy that most girls would be attracted to, but he drove me insane. He still didn't talk to me very much, but he would sit beside me during meals.

"What are they talking about?" I asked Carol, gesturing towards the men standing over by the van.

"They're planning a trip to Atlanta." I grimaced. It was so unsafe in Atlanta, it was overrun with walkers. I didn't want anyone to endanger themselves, especially Merle or Daryl.

"It's set then. I say we leave now." Shane decided, and the others agreed. They all dispersed so they could prepare, and I walked over to the Dixon brothers.

"I don't want you to go. It's not safe." I whispered. Merle laughed and wrapped his arm around my shoulder.

"We'll be alrigh', doll face." He assured me.

"I'm not goin' with them. I'm goin' huntin', and I'll be back tomorrow." Daryl said, and I hugged him tightly. I kissed the underside of his chin, and I could feel shivers rack his body. I was scared that I was being too forward, but I figured if I didn't start making the first moves, then it would never happen.

"I'll be fine." His voice was gruff and he pushed past me. I felt rejected. I looked up at Merle, my lower lip sticking out in a pout.

"Baby doll, don't you worry about us. Darylina will be fine, he's just being a bitch. And you know better than to worry about me, I'm tough as nails." Merle said, hugging me to his warm body. "Don't worry that pretty little head. We'll both be back tomorrow for you. Promise." He kissed me hair and strolled to the van where everyone else was waiting.

"C'mon Samantha, you can come do laundry with me." Carol suggested, smiling at me. I obliged and watched her scrub the clothes and then I would hang them up. We made small talk, but I was still worrying about my boys.

A few hours later, the group came back. Minus my Merle Dixon. Lori was reunited with her husband, and that was sweet. Everything was just hunky dory, except my best friend was missing. "Excuse me, where the hell is Merle?" I demanded, and everyone looked at me.

"Samantha .." Andrea started. She may have not liked Merle, but she knew how I felt about those boys.

"It was his own fault. He was a danger to himself and all of us." Lori's husband, Rick Grimes, butted in and said. I gave him a sharp look.

"Merle may seem threatening, but he wouldn't hurt anyone. It's not how he is." T-Dog chuckled darkly, but I decided to ignore it. I stomped off, super pissed at everyone, and went and sat in my tent that was beside the Dixon brother's.

That night at dinner, it was pretty silent.

Amy sat beside me, her head on my shoulder. "Samantha, are you in love with Merle?" I gasped and covered me face.

"Ewh, no! I could never like him that like. He's .. Merle. I love him like a best friend, because that's all he is to me." She gave me a sly grin.

"What about Daryl?" I felt my cheeks burn, and I turned my head to the side. "You like Daryl!" She squealed, shaking my arm.

"So what if I do? It's not like he ever notices me." I tried to play it off, but it did hurt my feelings. I just wanted his attention, even if that did sound pitiful.

"Are you kidding me? He's always staring at you. He watches you all the time. It's obvious that he likes you!" I scoffed. Daryl wasn't the type to really like anyway. He was so withdrawn and he seemed awkward around women. He was nothing like his brother. I decided not to comment. "I saw you kiss his neck earlier." She continued.

"Amy! Why were you watching us?" I exclaimed, making her giggle.

"I don't have anything interesting going on in my life, watching you all is like a soap opera." I rolled my eyes and picked at the rest of the beans on my plate. I wonder how Daryl is doing. And Merle, poor Merle.

"Speaking of Daryl Dixon, has anyone thought about how we were going to tell him that you left his brother handcuffed to the roof of a building, left to be walker bait?" Dale asked, and most people looked at me.

"No, it's not going to be me. I didn't handcuff my best damn friend to a roof and leave him to be eaten alive." I said. I wasn't going to be the one to piss him off, but I wouldn't mind being the one to comfort him. "You all are going to have to deal with that. I'm going to go to bed." I said, scooping the last bit of my beans in my mouth and throwing the paper plate in the fire.

I laid in my tent that night feeling very alone. I had always felt so safe with the Dixon brothers laying in the tents beside me, I knew that they wouldn't let anything hurt me. But that night, I felt so vulnerable. I hoped Daryl would get home early in the morning, and I hoped that poor Merle would be okay.

I snuck out of my tent and went over to the empty one that belonged to the rednecks. I grabbed Daryl's pillow off of his bed and one of Merle's shirts as well. I needed this to feel safe.

I laid my head on Daryl's bed and wrapped myself in Merle's shirt, and I cried myself to sleep that night.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own the Walking Dead, only Samantha. This is based on the episode, "Tell It to the Frogs." I hope everyone likes this one, feel free to review and tell me what you think!

The night was rough, and I could barely sleep. When I woke up the next morning, no one else was up. I climbed out of my tent and into the Dixon's tent to return their stuff. I sat in there sadly, hoping that today would go smoothly.

I sat in their tent for a long time, feeling worried and sad, until I heard movement outside. Carol was quietly moving around, trying to make a small breakfast. I decided to go spend time with her.

"Good morning, Samantha." She smiled and spoke in her timid voice.

"Good morning, Carol. Do you need any help?" I offered, but she shook her head. I decided to take the dry clothes of the clothes line and fold them up. She watched me carefully.

"Are you okay?" She asked me, and I wasn't sure how to answer without seeming rude.

"It's just hard right now. Daryl could be lying dead in the woods, and Merle could be dead on that roof, and here I am, folding laundry." She placed a motherly hand on my shoulder, and I smiled down at it.

"Those men are tough as hell. I have faith in them. Especially Daryl." I blushed at the mention of him. He was capable of taking care of himself, but I didn't want him to be alone. It was a scary thought.

"But Merle is handcuffed to the roof. If walkers get to him, he can't fight them off. He'll die." Carol looked at me sympathetically, because she knew that I was right. No matter how tough he is, he can't fight off a group of walkers one handed.

Everyone was up, roaming around the camp, doing their own thing a few hours later. The men were stripping apart Glenn's shiny, stolen, red car. Lori was hanging wet clothes up on the line. "I've been thinking about the man we left behind." I heard Rick mutter to Lori.

"You're not serious." She scoffed, rolling her eyes. A surge of anger rushed through me. The sound of a car approached, and it was Shane in his jeep, bringing water. A loud scream broke the silence, and we all sprinted towards the noise.

Lori wrapped her arms around Carl. "Nothing bit you? Nothing scratched you?" He shook his head and the woman sighed in relief. I followed the group to the scene, and there was a disgusting walker chewing apart a deer.

Everyone began beating it with various objects, but it refused to die. After they cut the walker's head off, it began to still move. We heard footsteps, and we knew it was another walker.

Daryl Dixon came out of the woods. "Oh, Jesus." Dale muttered, and I gave the old man a look.

"Son of a bitch! That's my deer! It's all gnawed on by this filthy, disease-bearing, motherless, poxy bastard!" He was kicking the hell out of it. I couldn't focus anymore, I couldn't believe Daryl was here. He showed us the squirrel he had managed to snag, and then noticed the moving walker head. He shot it in the head. "It's gotta be the brain. Don't ya'll know nothing?"

He walked back to the camp, yelling for Merle. "Merle, get your ugly ass out here! I got us some squirrel, let's stew 'em up!" I ran after him, grabbing at his arm. "Samantha." He said, looking down at my sad eyes. "What the hell's wrong wit ya?"

"Daryl, slow down. Need to talk to ya." Shane said.

"Bout what?" He asked, and I grabbed his hand tightly and interlaced our fingers. He looked down at me with a weird look on his face, but I shook my head and squeezed his hand.

"Bout Merle. There was a problem in Atlanta."

"He dead?" Shane shrugged.

"We're not sure."

"He either is or he aint!" Daryl argued, and then Rick cut in. Daryl was mocking and had no respect towards him, and he ripped his hand out of mine. He jumped at Rick, but Shane tackled Daryl to the ground. Daryl pulled out a knife, but Shane got him in a choke hold. "Choke holdin's illegal."

"Daryl .." I muttered, and he ignored me.

"Your brother does not work or play well with others." Rick told him, and T-Dog told him that he dropped the key down a drain.

"Hell wit all y'all! Just tell me where he is so I can go get him." He shouted, his voice cracking. My heart ached. Tears were slowly falling from my eyes. I wanted Merle to be safe. I wanted Daryl to not be hurting.

"He'll show you." Lori said, gesturing to Rick. "Isn't that right?"

"I'm going back." Rick agreed. Daryl stomped off, and I followed behind him.

"Daryl, come here!" I said, hugging him tight. He didn't say anything, and he didn't hug me back. But he stood there and let me hold him, and that was enough.

"Why would you risk your life for a douchebag like Merle Dixon?" Shane asked Rick.

"Hey, choose your words more carefully!" Daryl shouted at him, and I nodded my head in agreement.

"You might hate Merle, but he doesn't deserve this. No one deserves this." I said quietly, and Rick gave me an odd look.

"You really care about Merle." He stated.

"He's my best friend. Other than this big lug here." I said, nudging Daryl with my elbow and he scowled down at me.

"We left him like an animal in a trap. And that's no way for anyone to die, animal or human being." Rick said.

"So you and Daryl? That's your plan?" Rick stared at Glenn, who reluctantly agreed. T-Dog also volunteered to go.

"Obviously, I'm going." I stepped closer to Daryl and put my hand on his arm. He stared down at me incredulously.

"Tha hell you are! Ya think I'm gonna let ya go out there and get yaself killed? Merle would kill me." I scowled at him.

"I'm going to find Merle! He means a lot to me too, you know! I need to make sure he's okay!" I argued, and Daryl didn't argue back. "Daryl, I know you want me to be safe, but I'll go nuts if I'm here without both of you again." His expression seemed to soften, but I was probably just mistaken.

"Stay here, Samantha. I mean it." He said. I stomped off, furious and pissed at everyone. If Daryl didn't want me to go, then fine. Fine. I heard Daryl yell.

"Come on! Let's go!" I made it all the way back to my tent before I turned around and looked at them pulling off in the van, and that's when I started to cry. I sat in my tent and cried and pouted until I decided that there was nothing I could do about it, so I went to go help the women with the laundry. I grabbed my laundry, along with Merle's and Daryl's.

Shane and Carl were down by the water, trying to catch frogs. The women and I were watching a little bit away, scrubbing the dirt out of the clothes. Ed sat on the bed of the truck, watching us.

"I do miss my Maytag." Carol sighed, looking at all the clothes around us.

"I miss my Bens, my Sat Nav." Andrea said.

"I miss my coffeemaker, with that dual-drip filter and built in grinder, honey." Jacqui told us, ringing the water out of a shirt.

"My computer, texting." Amy said, and I nodded my head in agreement.

"I miss my vibrator." Andrea admitted, and I busted out laughing. Carol exclaimed, and Jacqui gave her a scandalous look.

"Me too." Carol said, looking around to make sure Ed wasn't around. That caused us to laugh even louder. Apparently that bothered Ed, because he came down the hill.

"What's so funny?" He asked, puffing on his cigarette.

"Just swapping war stories, Ed." Andrea said, making me giggle again. Ed gave me a sharp look. "Problem, Ed?"

"Nothing that concerns you. Maybe you should focus on your work. This ain't no comedy club." My blood started to boil. He continued to run that mouth of his. Andrea couldn't put up with it anymore, and she got in his face.

He tried to make Carol come with him, but we wouldn't allow it. He grabbed Carol's arm and tried to pull her away, and then smacked her in the face. Andrea and I jumped towards him, yelling and screaming. He tried to hit us, and I went to retaliate and hit back, but he grabbed my wrist. Shane showed up then, grabbing Ed and throwing him to the ground.

I grabbed Carol and hugged her tightly, inspecting the side of her face. "Carol, honey, are you okay?" I asked, but she was too busy crying. Shane had Ed pinned down on the ground, pounding his face like a slab of meat.

"You put your hands on your wife, your little girl, Samantha, or anybody else in this camp, I will not stop next time, do you hear me?" I didn't hear Ed's response, but I knew he wouldn't argue. "I'll beat ya to death, Ed."

Carol went running over to her husband, apologizing profulsely. Her lip was bleeding slightly, but it was nothing compared to Ed's destroyed face. I rubbed at my wrist, knowing it would bruise from where he grabbed me.

Daryl was going to shit when he came back and saw those marks.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead, I only own Samantha! This will be in the episode Vatos. Thank you for the favorites and follows!

I awoke the next morning to find Jim digging very large holes. Many holes. Dale was standing on top of the RV, watching him with binoculars. "Dale, what is he doing?" I asked. The older man shook his head.

"I couldn't tell ya, but we need to find out. We need to tell Shane." We climbed down from the top of the RV and hunted Shane down. "Shane, we need to talk to you about something." Dale said.

"Jim's being real weird. He's digging holes." I told him, wanting to get straight to the point.

"Holes? Why the hell is he digging holes?" Shane asked incredulously. We shrugged. "Well, let's go find out." Everyone followed him up the hill. "Hey, Jim. Why don't you hold up? We're concerned. You've been out here for hours." Jim stopped digging.

"So?" Jim scoffed.

"Why are you digging?" Shane asked, seeming irritated. "Are you heading to China?"

"I'm not hurting anyone." Jim defended himself, continuing to shovel.

"It's too hot to be out here doing this. You're gonna pass out." I told him gently.

"I'm just gonna say it. You're scaring people. My son and Carol's daughter." Lori told him sternly.

"There ain't nothing to be scared of. What the hell, I'm just out here by myself. Why don't yall just go and leave me the hell alone?" Shane asked him to stop shoveling long enough to take a break, and he started to get angry.

He brought up Carol's husband, and it seemed to make him madder. They began to fight over the shovel, and Shane had him pinned to the ground. "No one is gonna hurt you." Shane said.

"That's a lie. Biggest lie there is. I told that to my wife and two boys a hundred times, but it didn't matter. They came out of nowhere, there were dozens of them. Just pulled them right out of my hands. The only reason I got away was because the dead were too busy eating my family." Jim told us, and I felt my heart ache. That was so sad. This poor man had everything ripped away from him, right in front of him.

They tied Jim to a tree so he would cool down. Shane offered him some water and poured a bit on his head. "Sorry if I scared your boy and little girl." He told Lori and Carol.

"You have sunstroke. Nobody's blaming you." Lori said casually, but I think it still bothered her.

"You're not scared now, are you?" Jim asked, smiling when Sophia told him no. Carl continued to do his homework.

"Jim, do you know why you were digging?" Dale asked.

"Do you want to tell us?" I asked, squatting down near him.

"I had a reason but now I can't remember. Something I dreamt last night. Your dad was in it, and so were you." Jim said, and then he started trying to reassure Carl that his father would be fine. "And Samantha, we all know that those Dixon's are tough as shit. Too stubborn to die anyway." I gave him a weak smile. I sure hoped so.

Shane grabbed the bucket of fish to go clean them, and Carl and Sophia jumped at the chance to go help. I decided to go in the RV with Andrea, who was looking for something to put her sister's birthday gift in. It was a small little mermaid necklace. Her birthday was tomorrow. It was sad we couldn't celebrate.

That night at dinner, we all sat around the campfire. They were interrogating Dale about his watch. "I like what a father said to his son when he gave him a watch that had been handed down for generations. He said, "I give you the mausoleum of all hope and desire, which will fit your individual needs no better than it did mine or my father's before me. I give it to you, not that you may remember time, but that you may forget it now and then, and not spend all of your breath trying to conquer it.""

"You are so weird." Amy finally said, breaking the awkward silence.

"It's not me, it's-" I cut him off.

"Faulkner." Dale looked proud and nodded, giving me a big grin. Amy stood up to go to the bathroom. When she came back, she held open the door and exclaimed, "We're out of toilet paper?" I giggled. Such a trivial thing to worry about in the apocalypse.

A walker came around the RV and sunk his teeth into the flesh of her arm. She screamed loudly and we all jumped up. Walkers were coming from all over now, and Shane began shooting at every one he could.

I didn't know what to do, I felt so helpless. I was so scared, and I was frozen in place. A walker came snarling from behind me, but I was too frightened to move. "Samantha! Move!" Shane shouted, but I couldn't. I stumbled back a step, but that was all I could muster. "Damn it, Samantha!" He shouted again.

Just as I snapped out of it, someone shot the walker in front of me. "Sam, what tha hell are you doin? Move!" The familiar redneck voice made me jump, and I searched frantically for him. I finally spotted him and reached out, needing to touch him. He ran to me and grabbed me, pulling me closer to the RV. I clung to his shirt helplessly as he continued to shoot the walkers.

Amy was laying on the ground with flesh ripped away from her neck, and Andrea sat on her knees beside her. She was so bloody. Her beautiful pale skin ruined. Her eyes shut and she took her last breath. Andrea sobbed loudly, calling her name.

I stuck to Daryl's side like glue, my face buried into his chest as I cried with her. He had his arm protectively wrapped around me, holding me tight.

"I remember my dream now. Why I dug the holes." Jim said ominously. I looked around, taking in all the dead corpses, and I wailed again. That could've been any of us. It could've been Glenn, or Carol, or me, or Daryl.

Then it hit me. They didn't have Merle with them. I grabbed Daryl's arm, making him look down at me. "Merle?" I asked, and his face twisted up into a grimace. "Oh damn." I cried out, assuming the worst.

Someone was out to get me. I didn't know if it was God, or maybe if I had too much bad karma, but someone was taking away the only things that made me happy. I prayed that Daryl wasn't next.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own the Walking Dead, I only own Samantha.

Andrea was crouched next to the body of her dead sister. Lori sat down beside her. "Andrea, I'm sorry. She's gone. You need to let us take her. We all loved her, and we'll do this gently." Andrea didn't say anything, she didn't even look away from Amy's face, so Lori gave up and walked away.

Daryl and the rest of the males were hitting the dead in the head with sharp objects, making sure it was impossible for them to come back. It was gross and gory, and I had to look away. They were carrying the bodies and throwing them in piles.

Rick walked up, noticing that Andrea hadn't moved. He walked over to her and went to talk, but she pulled her gun out on them quickly. "I know how the safety works." She said quietly, and Rick backed up.

"Andrea, honey, it'll be okay." I sat down beside her. She didn't look at me, but she didn't pull her gun on me either. "We really did love Amy. Of course it wasn't as much as you loved her. You two were sisters, and that's something that no one can compete with. But we need to handle this soon. She could hurt you." I told her, but I got up quickly and walked off before she got mad or shot me.

Daryl was furiously talking about Amy. "She's a time bomb. I say we take the shot." I scoffed, and Lori wasn't very happy about that idea either.

"For God's sakes, let her be." Daryl, Shane and Rick exchanged glances.

They continued to pick up dead bodies, and they went to throw one of the bodies of one of our friends in the pile with the walkers. Glenn started yelling, "That pile is for the geeks! We don't burn our people! We bury them! We bury them." He started so distraught, and I put my hand on his arm.

"We won't burn our people, Glenn. I promise. I'll make sure of it." I gave Daryl a stern look, but he just rolled his eyes. Glenn told him which pile the body should go in, and he scoffed.

"Yah reap what yah sew." Someone yelled at him to shut up, and he threw down his pick axe. "Yah left my brother fer dead! Yah all had this comin'!" He stomped off angrily, and I followed behind him.

"Daryl, I know you're pissed about Merle, but that's not why this happened. We didn't lose all of these innocent people because of their mistakes. This is just what happens now. The world is a shitty place, and we have to deal with it." I told him, grabbing his hand. He ripped his hand away and kept walking, so I went back to camp.

Jacqui was yelling when I got back. "A walker bit Jim!" I yelled for Daryl, and he came running back, looking panicked. He ran up to Jim, demanding to see his bite. He had a large, angry bite wound on his stomach.

"I say we put a pick axe in his head and the dead girl's." Daryl said.

"Is that how you would want it?" Shane scoffed.

"Yeah, and I'd thank ya while ya did it." Daryl retorted, and I gave him a sad look. I hated when he talked like this. I never wanted him to get to that point where we would have to put him down.

They grabbed Jim and Dale went over to Andrea and Amy. I stood close enough to hear Dale speak about his wife and her cancer. Death makes you angry. We feel cheated, betrayed, since our loved ones leave us behind while we suffer alone. I silently agreed.

I squatted down beside her again and heard her talk about Amy's birthday. "Happy birthday, Amy. You beautiful soul." I said, grabbing her hand. Andrea pulled out a necklace and put it on her neck. I noticed Carol walk over to the dead body of Ed and repeatedly bash his head in with the pick axe.

We watched Amy closely, and Andrea bent down over her face. She was making sounds. She was coming back. Andrea gave me a look, and I closed my eyes. It was time.

Amy opened her eyes, and they were eerily beautiful. Her skin was pale and covered with her own blood. "Amy, I'm sorry." Andrea kept repeating, and Amy reached up for her. She tangled her fingers in her hair and kept pulling her head towards her.

"Andrea.." I whispered. Tears started to fall from my eyes.

"I love you." She said before shooting her. I sniffed and wrapped my arms around Andrea, holding her as she cried. After a few minutes, I helped her wrap her body up in a sheet, and we drug her lifeless body to a grave. Andrea was persistent about putting her sister in the grave on her own.

Since Amy was no longer a threat to the camp, they decide to take care of the next threat. Jim. He was holed up in the RV, sweating profusely and throwing up. The bite was starting to take its toll on Jim.

That evening, we sat around the smoldering fire pit. "I trust Rick's instincts. We need to stay together. So those of you that agree, we leave first thing in the morning." Shane said in an ominous voice.

The next morning, we all stood around the vehicles. "We're not going. We have family in Birmingham. I have to do the best for my family." Rick gave Morales a gun and ammo, making Daryl scoff. I hugged his wife and his children.

I leaned against Daryl's shoulder. "Can I ride with you?" I asked him, and he stared down at me.

"Yah don't wanna ride in tha RV?" I shook my head.

"I need to be with you. You make me feel safe." I admitted quietly, keeping my head down. He sighed and agreed, nodding his head in the direction of his truck.

"Let's go."

We didn't even get very far until we began having trouble with the RV and its damn hose. "This thing is more trouble than it's worth." I complained, kicking at the tire. Daryl placed a hand on my head. "Stop." I pouted, feeling like a scolded child.

Jacqui came running towards us, giving us a report on Jim. "My bones are like glass. Every little bump .. It's killing me. Leave me here. I'm done. Leave me. I want to be with my family." I bowed my head. His poor family was dead, we knew it. He told us so.

But in the end, the decision was clear. We needed to respect his wishes. We placed him against a tree, and he smiled at us. "Breeze feels nice." My eyes welled up with tears. We just keep losing friends.

We all said our goodbyes, He refused to take the gun that Rick was offering. It was heart wrenching to get back in Daryl's truck and ride away, leaving him behind. He smiled with his head upturned to the sky, and that's how I wanted to remember that man.

I sniffled as I sat in the passenger seat of the truck, and Daryl looked over at me. He gently placed his hand on my knee and patted it awkwardly. I smiled down at it before shyly peeking at him through my lashes. I placed my hand on top of his on my knee, and that's how we stayed, the whole ride.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own the Walking Dead, I only own Samantha. Episode TS-19.

When we arrived at the CDC, there were corpses everywhere. Smelly, rotten, maggot covered corpses. We hesitantly made our way to the building. I covered my nose and stayed close to Daryl. I assumed the army or someone had came and killed all the walkers.

There was no sign of life. "You led us to a graveyard!" Daryl yelled. Everyone was so busy arguing that they didn't notice the small movement of the camera.

"Guys!" I shouted.

"The camera moved! I know you're in there! We're desperate, please. We have women, children, no food, no gas, no where to go. You're killing us! Please! _You're killing us!"_ He screamed. We all turned around to run when the doors opened wide, revealing a very ominous white light.

We cautiously entered the building. "Hello?" A voice yelled out. "Anyone infected?"

"One of ours was, we left his behind." Rick responded.

"Why are you here? What do you want?" The voice asked.

"A chance." Rick said. He hesitated, not wanting to really give us a chance.

"You all submit to a blood test. If you have anything out there, go get it now. Once the door closes, it stays closed." We nodded, running inside and shutting the door behind us. He said something to a box on the wall, and the door shut.

"Rick Grimes." Rick said, introducing himself.

"Dr. Edwin Jenner." We all piled into the elevator, and Daryl decided to mention the doctor's large gun. "You look harmless enough. Except you, I'll have to keep my eye on you." He joked, smiling down at Carl.

We all submitted to the blood test, and it didn't hurt. I had donated blood plenty of times at the local blood drives, I thought it was an important thing to do. It had never bothered me.

Andrea stood up after giving her blood sample, but she was woozy. "Are you okay?" Jenner asked. Jacqui grabbed Andrea to keep her steady.

"We haven't eaten in days." She told him.

That evening, we all sat around a large table, laughing and drinking and eating. I sipped at my wine, savoring the delicious flavor. Carl wanted to try, and I laughed. "Go ahead, Lori. What's the worst thing that could happen?" She gave me a little smile and they gave him a cup of it. He took a drink and made a horrible face.

"Just stick to soda pop, bud." Shane chuckled.

"Not you Glenn! I wanna see how red your face can get!" Daryl said, and I laughed, my head falling over onto his shoulder. Rick stood up, tapping on his glass.

"We need to thank our host properly." We all hooted and hollered our thanks, and Jenner just shyly waved us off.

"When are you gonna tell us what happened here?" Shane asked, and the mood instantly sobered up.

"We're celebrating. Let's not do this." Rick said calmly, and Shane continued to run his mouth.

"When things got bad, people left. When things got worse, the rest bolted, some opted out." I shuddered. Suicides.

"You didn't leave, why?" Andrea asked.

"I just kept working, hoping to do some good."

"Man, you're a buzz kill." I said, sitting my wine down and glaring at Shane, and Glenn agreed from behind me.

Jenner led us down the halls, showing us the rooms and bathrooms. "If you shower, go easy on the hot water." He told us, walking off. Glenn and I shared excited glances.

"Hot water?" We were all so excited. It had been a _long_ time since any of us got to enjoy a nice hot shower. It felt wonderful to wash the grime out of my hair and the dirt off of my skin. I even found a razor in one of the drawers, along with a new toothbrush. By the time I was finished, I felt like a new woman.

I went to bed happily that night, enjoying the soft fabric of the couch under my clean skin. The morning came too quickly, and I had to drag myself to the kitchen. They were all quietly eating, probably suffering from hangovers.

"Shane, what the hell happened to your neck?" I whispered, sitting down beside Daryl.

"Must've did it in my sleep." Dr. Jenner came downstairs then, and I noticed Dale stiffen.

"I don't want to badger you with questions first thing in the morning," Dale started, but Jenner cut him off.

"But you will anyway." After we had finished eating, he took us to one of the labs. "Playback of TS-19." He told Vi. "Only two people have ever gotten the chance to see this." He showed us an extremely enhanced picture of a brain.

Lights were flickering beautifully all inside of the brain, and I gasped. "What are those lights?" Daryl asked from beside me.

"A person's life. Experiences, memories. Everything."

"Dr. Jenner, that is absolutely amazing. " I was completed awed. He began teaching us synapses, which I vaguely remembered learning about in my senior year anatomy class.

"This person died?" He nodded.

"Test subject 19. They were bitten. Infected. They volunteered to let us watch the process." Vi scanned to the first event, which showed the infection attacking the brain. The lights stopped. The patient died right then.

"Is that what happened to Jim?" Sophia asked, and my heart ached. She was so innocent. Andrea was so pained, she looked like she was going to break down. Vi scanned to the second event.

"They came back." I whispered, noticing the small lights flickering in the brain.

He nodded. "It restarts the brain stem. Gets them up and moving." Only the stem had a flickering of red, the rest of the brain remained dark. A large beam of light shot through the patients head, making me jump.

"Oh God, what was that?" Carol exclaimed.

"He shot his patient in the head." I responded the same time Andrea did. Jenner shut down the main screen and work stations.

"You have no idea what this is, do you?" Andrea asked, crossing her arms.

"It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal." He trailed off.

"Or the wrath of God." Jacqui said quietly.

"It could be that." He agreed. I sighed, feeling let down. I wanted answers. I wanted solutions. But no one had anything.

"Man, I wanna get shitfaced drunk. Again." Daryl said, rubbing his eyes. I nodded, placing my hand on his arm.

"I hate to ask one more question, but that clock. Why is it counting down?" Dale asked, and that caught my attention.

"When it hits zero, the basement generators run out of fuel."

"And then what?" Rick asked, but Jenner didn't answer. "Vi, what happens?" He asked again.

"Facility-wide decontamination?" I repeated after Vi. That sounded shitty. Rick took off, running down the steps. The men followed them, leaving the women and children on their own. I was sitting with Lori and Carl when she pointed out that the air stopped. That made me nervous. The generators must be shutting off.

I walked out into the hallway, noticing the commotion going on. Daryl started chasing after Jenner, yelling at him. "Jenner, what's happening?" Rick asked, and he started rambling on about the computers.

"The French were the last to hold out, that I know of. While our people ran and killed themselves, they stayed in the labs until the end." Rick told us to go pack our things, but a loud buzzing started.

"What's going on?!" I screamed. Jenner locked the doors, locking us in the room with him. Shane and Daryl started jumping at Jenner, but the others intervened.

"I told you once the doors closed, there was no way it would open again." Jenner was angry, he began screaming. I flinched back, my eyes welling with tears. What was going to happen to us here?

VI started explaining about the bombs. "It sets the air on fire. No pain, just an end." I cried out, making Daryl look at me. I felt like I couldn't breathe.

Shane and Daryl began hitting the door with whatever they could find. I sat down on the ground by myself, crying hard. "Daryl!" I cried out, reaching for him as he walked past. He sighed, squatting down next to me.

"Listen Sam, don't break down on me. We will get out of here." He told me, and I sniffled.

"I need Merle." I sobbed out, and Daryl bit at his thumb.

"He ain't here. But yah got me." He hugged me tightly for a split second, before getting back up to argue with Jenner.

Shane shot the computers, the lights, everything he could. "Are you done?" Rick yelled.

"I guess we all are." Shane mumbled. I stood up, clinging to Daryl's side, gripping the side of his shirt. Jenner revealed to us that the test subject was his wife. I shook my head. This was too much to handle.

Rick and Jenner talked quietly, and then Jenner whispered in his ear. The doors were opened, but I hesitated. "Sam! Come on!" Daryl yelled, but I was too busy watching Jacqui. She refused to come out with us. She was crying, and I ran over to hug her. Andrea refused to leave, but Dale was staying behind to talk to her. I didn't get to see what happened between the two because Daryl gripped my arm tightly, right where Ed had done a few days prior. "Let's GO!" He dragged me behind him.

The main doors were still locked tight. They hit the windows with chairs, they even shot at it. "I have something that might help." Carol pulled a grenade out and gave it to Rick. Daryl pulled me away from the blast, then pulling me back up and outside into the world.

Daryl and I hopped into his truck, breathing heavily. "Look!" Lori shouted, pointing towards the CDC. Andrea and Dale ran out, making us smile. The smiles fell from our faces and we all dropped down during the blast.

I panted heavily, looking over at Daryl. "Damn." He nodded, agreeing with me. We all drove off quickly, knowing the blast would attract walkers. I pulled my knees up to my chest and placed my head on them.

"Is there anywhere safe around here?" I asked Daryl, and he hesitated.

"No. I don't think there is."


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead, I only own Samantha! I hope people are enjoying the story, leave some reviews and let me know! This is the first episode of season two, "What Lies Ahead."

It was rough not having a camp to stay in, it was hard living out of our vehicles. Daryl had abandoned the truck, so now I rode in the RV with Dale and them. I missed the personal time with Daryl, he was such a comfort to me.

Shane sat in the RV with us after abandoning his jeep, and he was showing Andrea and I how to clean a gun. "That looks really hard." I commented, watching him do it with such ease. He shrugged.

"It's not bad. You just gotta get used to it." We stopped in the middle of the highway because it was so blocked off. We tried to go around the vehicles but it was impossible to go too far. The engine in the RV began to sputter, and that also put a damper on any movement.

Daryl began rummaging through the cars. "We can find plenty of stuff here." He said. We all walked around searching through the cars. Some still had bodies in it, some were empty. I saw one vehicle that had a car seat in the back, splattered with large amounts of dried blood. My stomach lurched, and I moved away as I began to gag. I had nothing in my stomach, so the only thing I could do was dry heave.

"It's okay. Better than them sufferin' in this shitty world." Daryl said. I sniffed, tears filling my eyes from the gagging. I stood up and moved on, searching glove compartments and trunks. I found some cans of food, assorted medications, bandages, and a few new bottles of water.

"Get down! Get under the cars!" I heard Rick tell people, and I decided to drop down and hide. I heard T-Dog call out, but I was too scared to get up. I could see the shuffling of the rotting feet beside my head. I shut my eyes, not wanting to look.

The groans were loud and they made me shudder. Where was Daryl? I couldn't see him from where I was laying, and I began to panic. I couldn't catch my breath. They were coming out in short, quick bursts. Rick was laying under the car across from me, his finger pressed to his lips.

I saw T-Dog stumble past me, holding his arm tightly. I could see blood dripping from his arm down to the asphalt. I had to help him, but there were too many walkers around me. They would smell his blood, and it would all be over.

The amount of footsteps started to decrease, and I was hoping the heard was thinning out. After waiting a few minutes and not hearing anymore, I started to roll out from under my car just in time to hear someone scream.

Poor little Sophia was being chased by two walkers, and she was running as fast as she could to get away. "Sophia!" I screeched, going to run after her. Rick went after her also, but he was the one that actually caught up to her because my foot got stuck on a tree root and I rolled down the hill.

"Ugh, damn it!" I shouted, hitting my fist against the ground. "Sam! Are you okay?" Glenn asked, climbing over the guard rail on the side of the road.

"Yeah, my foot got stuck and I tripped. I'm fine." He helped me up off the ground and I dusted myself off. "Sophia!" I realized, turning my head widely. I couldn't see the little girl anymore. I could, however, hear the sobs of her mother.

Glenn helped me back over the guard rail, and Daryl was standing close by me. "Ya okay?" His voice was gruff and he wouldn't meet my eyes. He had his thumb up to his mouth as he bit at the skin and nail.

"I'm fine. Seriously, it was just an accident." He nodded. Rick came back not too long after he left, and a group of us decided to go searching for her. Rick took us to the spot he said he left her at, but she wasn't waiting for us.

"All she had to do was keep going straight. She veered off that way." Daryl said, crouching low to the ground.

"Well she was probably scared and confused. Maybe something spooked her." I suggested, and the others agreed. Rick suggested that Shane, Glenn, and I went back to the highway while he and Daryl continued to search.

"Are you sure?" I asked, and Daryl nodded.

"Go look through the cars. Find somethin' for us to eat." Daryl told me. I could do that. When we made it back up to the highway, everyone was busy moving cars around and searching through them. I walked down the highway to inspect some cars that no one had searched yet.

There was nothing special in the first few cars, but in the last one I found a brand new bag of beef jerky and a box of crackers. I grabbed them and the unopened Gatorade that was in the back seat and carried them back to the group.

They didn't notice me because Carl was too busy showing them what he had found. It was an arsenal full of knives and axes. Shane yelled at him to take them to Dale, and he sadly slumped away with the weapons.

I rolled my eyes when I saw them arguing. She didn't need to be screwing around with him when she had a husband and a son to worry about. I walked over to Carol and put my arm around her shoulder. Shane started a vehicle and the radio turned on, but it sounded like a recording was playing.

The sun was beginning to go down and Rick and Daryl weren't back yet. Carol was watching nervously. I stood beside her at the guard rail. "Carol, if anyone can find Sophia, it'll be Daryl Dixon. He's really great at tracking, he can find her in no time." I tried to reassure her.

"Look! They're back." Glenn pointed out, and Rick and Daryl came walking up the hill. Sophia wasn't with them.

"Is that blood?" Carol panted, her voice panicky. Daryl was covered in blood. Why was he always covered in blood?

"We took down a walker. But he wasn't near Sophia." She shook her head.

"How do you know that?" She cried.

"We cut the sum'bitch open and made sure." Daryl said quietly, and I felt my stomach lurch. Carol's knees went weak and she sat down on the guard rail.

"How could you leave her out there?" She shouted at Rick, panting loudly. "She's just a child! She can't be out there alone!" Rick looked very upset at being blamed, he did the best that he could. He did everything that he could have done.

He stood up, looking regretful. Carol sat on the guard rail and cried, and I wrapped my arm around her tightly. Lori was on one side and Andrea was squatted in front of us.

The nect morning, Rick gave us all weapons from the arsenal. Shane refused to give us guns, and it infuriated Andrea. "Does it not bother you?" She asked me, and I shrugged.

"I guess as long as I have a weapon, I'll be fine." I retorted, picking up a hatchet. "I'm not too happy that they would have to get super close to me for me to kill them, but at least I have something." She didn't look happy with that answer.

"Chances are, Sophia is by the creek. It's her only landmark." Daryl said, setting a plan for us to go search for her. Carl was allowed to go with us, and he was so excited.

"C'mon buddy. Let's go find Sophia." I said, ruffling his hair. He laughed and smacked my hand away.

In the woods, we found a tent that was still up. "Sophia, it's mommy.." Carol called out quietly, and Daryl bent down slowly. He unzipped it and looked inside, only to reveal a very smelly, very decomposed corpse. The smell was unbearable.

"Daryl?" Carol called out.

"Ain't her." He responded, and then we heard church bells ringing. We sprinted in the direction of the sound. I was skeptical about the bells, but didn't say anything. When we got there, we were disappointed to find that the bells were on a timer.

I noticed Carol went back in the church, and I decided to follow. I sat in the very back pew and bowed my head. I wasn't sure how to pray. I couldn't remember the last time I had sincerely prayed to God.

Rick walked in, not noticing me in the back pew. He stood in front of the statue of Jesus and removed his hat, speaking quietly. I bit back a sob as I heard his sincere words. I was walking with Rick, Shane and Carl through the woods, the others had already left.

"Look!" I whispered loudly, pointing at the beautiful deer that I could faintly see through the trees. Rick smiled and nudged Carl, getting his attention. Shane raised his gun to kill it, but Carl stepped forward.

It was beautiful to watch. The animal was so innocent in this hellacious world. Carl walked slowly towards it, and it didn't even notice him until he stepped on a branch, but even then it didn't run. "So sweet." I muttered, and Rick agreed beside me.

Carl smiled happily at the animal.

A loud sound echoed through the trees, and I gasped.

Carl hit the ground, along with the deer. Blood seeped through his camouflage shirt. Someone had shot Carl Grimes.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead! I only own Samantha.

This will take place during the second episode of season two, "Bloodletting."

Rick hoisted his son up and began running, the large man that shot Carl trying to tell him how to get there. I sprinted alongside Rick, running with ease. I had always been a great runner, I ran cross country in high school and it paid off. After running for what felt like forever, we saw a house.

"Was he bit?" An older gentleman asked, and Rick shook his head.

"Shot. By your man." He replied. "Please, help my son!" He exclaimed, running towards the porch. The older man led us into the house, yelling for his supplies and kit.

We laid Carl down on the bed. "Is he dead? Is he dead?" Rick kept repeating. Hershel checked his heartbeat. "It's faint, but it's there." He replied. They sent Rick out of the room and I followed close behind him.

I kept my hand on his lower back, letting him know I was there to comfort him. Shane wiped the blood off of Rick's forehead, and I calmly rubbed his back. We walked back in the house together, Otis following us.

"What's his blood type?" Hershel asked.

"A positive. Same as mine." Rick replied, and I raised my hand.

"Mine is A positive as well." Hershel nodded.

"That's very fortunate. You both need to stick around, I'll need you. Now, what happened?" He asked. Otis explained how he shot the buck and the bullet went clean through the deer and into Carl. Hershel then told us that the bullet didn't enter Carl and leave cleanly. It broke into very dangerous fragments.

"Lori. She doesn't know. My wife doesn't know, she doesn't know." He kept repeating, beginning to sob. We went and sat in the living room for a while, giving the family time to work on the small boy.

Hershel's oldest daughter, Maggie, came running out of the room. "Rick, Samantha! We need blood, quickly!" She exclaimed, calling us into the room. Carl was writhing and screaming as he laid on the bed. Hershel made Shane help hold him down.

Rick watched helplessly as they dug around in the boy's flesh, making him scream louder. "Stop! You're killing him!" Rick roared, and I grabbed his arm so he wouldn't reach out and touch Hershel. His wife grabbed ahold of the two of us, demanding we give them the blood.

Patricia stuck the needle in Rick first, and Maggie came up on my other side with another needle. Carl went limp. He had passed out from the pain. Hershel held a little piece of metal in between the forceps. "One down, five to go."

I sat by Carl's bed, sipping on a cup of juice. I was feeling a little woozy from donating blood, but it was no where near as much blood as Rick had donated. I would be up and moving around in no time. Rick was sitting beside me, saying that we needed to get ahold of Lori, that she needed to know.

Shane took him outside the room to talk to him privately, and I remained by Carl's bed. I looked down at him sadly before bowing my head and closing my heads. I interlaced my hands and propped them on his bed, leaning down to pray.

"You're religious?" Hershel asked quietly once I lifted my head up and wiped my eyes.

"Yeah, I am. I went to church every Wednesday and Sunday with my momma and daddy. I was responsible for the daycare at the church too." He nodded respectfully at me. He must be a religious man.

"Come with me. We need to talk to Rick." Hershel told me, standing up and holding the door open for me. I nodded, following closely behind him. I looked back at Carl's pale body lying on the bed. He was so young, so helpless.

"He's out of danger for the moment. I have to remove the other fragments, they're deeper. His belly is distended, his pressure has dropped. I have to open him up, find the bleeder, stitch it up. He can't move _at all._ " He then continued to tell us what supplies he needed. Otis suggested going to the high school.

Shane volunteered to go, and I gasped. "Shane .." I said quietly, and he just looked at me. Otis decided to go with him, he said this was his fault anyway.

"Where is she? Your wife?" Maggie asked.

"We were stopped on the highway. She should be there with the rest of our group." Rick told her. She nodded.

"I'm going to go find her." Maggie said.

"Let me go with you. Maybe having a familiar face with you will make them trust you." I said. I hadn't given as much blood as Rick had, so I could easily move around now. Maggie agreed, and Rick hugged me before I left.

"Thank you." He said to the two of us, and Maggie smiled at him.

"You ever rode a horse before?" She asked me. I shook my head nervously.

"Hop on up here with me. You're pretty tiny, Lori should be able to fit on here with the two of us." She snapped the reigns, making the horse start trotting.

We were riding for what felt like forever before I spotted figures in the distance. "There! That should be them!" I exclaimed, pointing my finger at the group. A walker could easily be seen hovering over someone, and I heard the loud screams. Maggie directed the horse in the direction of the screams, and I was shocked to see Andrea lying on the ground.

Maggie rode by and hit the walker with her bat, knocking it off its feet. "Lori? Lori Grimes?" Maggie hollered, and Lori nodded. "Rick sent me, you gotta come now. There's been an accident, Carl's been shot."

"It's true, Lori! He needs you!" I exclaimed. Daryl looked pissed.

"Samantha! What are you doin' with her?! You don't know her!" I shook my head.

"I trust her, Daryl. This is serious, Carl isn't doing too good. We need to hurry!" I said, and Maggie nodded. Lori threw her bag down on the ground, and Daryl was screaming as we rode off.

"Damn it, Samantha!" I felt bad knowing he was worried, but I couldn't just leave Carl and Rick behind. Rick and Hershel were standing on the porch as we rode up, and I could see the pain in his face and he embraced Lori. The woman began to sob and he led her into the house.

Carl was still lying flat on his back, unconscious and pale. His breathing was quiet and almost nonexistent. She laid beside him on the bed, and I had to look away. This was not my son, this was not a moment I needed to witness. This was something personal to the Grimes family.

Patricia came around not too long after that, asking for more blood. I donated first, followed by Rick. I sat out on the porch while Rick and Lori talked to Hershel. I sat out there and watched the sun set, thinking about the Dixon brothers.

I wondered how Merle was doing, wondered if he was still alive. He would love to live in a place like this. Daryl was probably still infuriated with both Lori and myself. Hopefully they would arrive at the farm soon, I missed him so much it hurt. I wondered if he missed me too.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead! I only own Samantha!

This chapter is based on season two, episode three: "Save the Last One." Enjoy!

I laid in the bed that Maggie led me to after I donated my blood yet again. I was tired and worn out, and my body felt like it could not function anymore. I needed rest, but I could not sleep peacefully knowing that Daryl was still out there in the woods. I bowed my head and clasped my hands together tightly.

"Please God, keep Daryl safe. Bring him back to me. I need him, I don't think I can survive in this world without him. I already lost Merle, I can't lose Daryl next." I prayed, tears spilling out of my closed eyes. I buried my head in my pillow, letting the material absorb the tears. As I laid there in bed, my mind wondered to Sophia.

She was so young, she had her whole life ahead of her. She was too young to die due to a shit storm like this, and poor Carol. Poor, poor Carol. First, she had to deal with an abusive husband. Then said husband got his face eaten off, and now, her baby girl was missing. That would be too much for me to bear.

I tried to silence my thoughts by focusing on the sound of the crickets outside in the open fields. It was a beautiful sound. It reminded me of the good times before everything went to hell, when things were normal.

I dozed off that night, still focusing intently on the sound of the wildlife. I woke up when the sun was rising, and I heard some movement downstairs. I trotted quietly down the stairs, not wanting to make too much noise and disturb whoever was still sleeping. I peeked into Carl's room, and gasped when I saw him moving around.

Rick noticed me in the doorway. "He's awake." He told me, his voice cracking as happy tears slid down his tanned cheeks. I smiled at the family, happy that they are finally getting a little relief. I went to turn around and walk away when I heard Lori begin to sob.

Carl's small frame was being racked by hard shakes. "A seizure." I whispered, watching as Rick wrapped Lori in his arms. I turned away, not wanting to watch. Hershel said Carl needed more blood, but Rick was able to donate anymore. "Would it hurt if I did it?" I asked.

Hershel stared at me for a moment. I felt much better than I did the previous night. "Sit down." He said, gesturing for me to take a seat on the bed. Once he drew the blood, he placed a piece of gauze on the puncture wound. "You go right down to that kitchen and get something to eat." I nodded, standing up slowly.

The difficult part was getting down the stairs, because I started to feel more and more woozy with every step I took. "Good morning, Samantha. Are you alright?" Patricia asked. She was sewing up the wound on T-Dog's arm, and Glenn was leaning against the doorway.

I gasped and ran to Glenn, hugging him. "When did you get here?" I asked.

"Last night." He said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. T-Dog grinned at me, but winced as Patricia continued to stitch up his arm. "Are you okay?" Glenn asked, repeating the older woman's question.

I nodded, "Just gave some more blood for Carl. He had a seizure. Hershel said he wasn;t getting enough oxygen to his brain." They were silent for a moment.

"Where did you get this medicine?" Patricia asked.

"It belonged to someone in our group. Merle Dixon. Daryl gave them to us, that's his brother." Glenn explained, and T-Dog made a comment about Merle not being a friend. She asked what Merle was taking it for. "The clap." Glenn said, but then he got flustered.

I bit my lip. "Where is Daryl?" I asked, and the two men exchanged looks.

"I guess still on the highway." Glenn told me.

"You guess?" I scoffed.

"We aren't really responsible for what Daryl Dixon does. I really couldn't care less." T-Dog said, and I gave him a dirty look.

"Well, if it wasn't for Daryl, you might be dead on the side of the highway, being gnawed on by walkers." I retorted, and T-Dog scowled. I sighed, feeling bad. "Listen, man. I'm sorry I said that, you know I don't wish anything bad upon any of ya. But Daryl is my best friend in the whole world, and you know how much Merle meant to me." No one said anything, giving me a moment to get lost in my own thoughts. "I'm going to get something to eat." I said, going to the kitchen.

I poured myself a cup of orange juice and grabbed a peach that was on the table in a bowl. I wasn't sure if it would be a delectable combination, but I needed something in my system. I seemed to mope around the rest of the day, not really wanting much company. The only person I didn't mind being around right now was Maggie, and that's just because we got along so well. Glenn seemed to hover around her as well, but I assumed it was for different reasons.

When night rolled around, I was sitting in the living room, skimming through one of Hershel's medical books. It was on the anatomy of a pig. I chuckled quietly to myself as I reminisced on my high school days. When I was a senior, we dissected a pig in my Anatomy class. It was a fetal pig, and it was the hardest thing I had ever had to do. It steered me away from a medical profession.

Patricia went jogging up the stairs, making me put my book down in curiosity. I walked up the stairs behind her, watching her run into Carl's room. They were moving him around, a Hershel had a tray of surgical tools beside him. A loud noise rumbled from outside the house, and it was Shane driving Otis's truck.

I didn't see Otis with him. I stayed in Carl's room with Patricia, not wanting to leave her alone. Hershel came back into the room, his face slightly paler than normal. He looked at me. "If you don't think you can handle this, then go. Now." I nodded, going back to the couch downstairs.

Shane came in and looked at me while I sat on the couch. He looked off. I reached a hand out towards him, and he stared at it. "Shane? Are you okay?" I asked, standing up. I went to touch his arm, but he moved it away quickly, as if I was burning him.

"Don't, Samantha." he muttered, walking past me. I heard Patricia's sobs coming from the kitchen, and I covered my mouth with my hand. Otis didn't make it back, I realized. I sighed into my hand, feeling bad for the woman. Maggie came down the steps then and gave me a weak smile, and I held my arms out towards her.

She immediately fell into my grasp and began sobbing. I rubbed her back gently and smoothed down her short hair. "Otis is normally so careful! He hardly ever got a mark on him when he went out!" she cried, and I felt my suspicions rise.

If he was normally always fine, why was this time different? It should have been easier, he had Shane with him, and he was wonderful help. Did Shane do something? What if..

What if Shane killed Otis? 


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead! I only own Samantha!

This episode is based on season two, episode four: Cherokee Rose. Enjoy!

When the next morning rolled around, we were all out in front of the house when we heard the familiar sound of an engine. I looked up, wiping the sweat off of my brow. Dale's RV was pulling up into the driveway, everyone else behind him. "Daryl!" I hollered, even though I knew he could not hear me. Maggie smiled at me.

I tore my work gloves off and threw them to the side. Daryl parked his motorcycle in the driveway and I sprinted over to him. I threw my arms around him in a tight hug, burying my face in his chest. His smell was so familiar and comforting. He placed one hand on my back, patting it gently. "Samantha. I could kill yer stupid ass." He told me, and I giggled.

"I know, Daryl. But I'm fine. These are really good people." I assured him, and he nodded. Rick and Lori were talking to the rest of the group, and I reluctantly released my hold on the younger Dixon brother.

"What are ya'll doin', gatherin' rocks?" He asked. I sighed.

"We're getting ready for a funeral. I'll tell ya everything later, we gotta get this finished." Daryl didn't look happy with my answer. "it was one of their people." I told him quietly, and he nodded in understanding.

When the funeral came, Hershel was standing in front of us with a suit and a Bible. I was shocked to see this, I expected just for everyone to say a few words and move on with their day. It may seem cruel, but this is a cruel world that we live in now.

"Blessed be God, Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ," Hershel began, but I couldn't focus on his words. I was too busy watching Maggie and Patricia. "Shane, will you speak for Otis?" The older man asked, and I had to hold back my gasp.

Shane looked apprehensive, and at first I thought he would refuse, and he tried to. But Patricia coerced him into speaking, and he stepped forward. "We were about done. Almost out of ammo, we were down to our pistols by then. I was limpin. It was bad, my ankle was all swollen up. 'We gotta save the boy.' He said. Gave me his backpack, shoved me ahead." He told us about how Otis offered to take the rear, and when he looked back, he was being demolished by the undead. He placed one of the stones on the monument.

Daryl was watching Shane closely, giving him skeptical looks. After the funeral, they decided to go looking for Sophia. "Daryl, are you going?" I asked, my voice quiet.

"Of course I'm goin'." He scoffed, slinging his bow up on his shoulder. I swallowed, not wanting to make him mad.

"You just got here." I said, my voice quieter than before. He sighed, knowing that I was becoming upset.

"Sam, we gotta find her. She's just a lil' girl." He told me, and I nodded. I needed to not be selfish. Daryl was thinking about what was best for little Sophia, and I knew it meant a lot to him to be able to find her. I grabbed his hand in mine for a moment, giving it a little squeeze, not saying anything. I was scared if I said anything else, I would either beg him to stay or I might cry. I dropped his hand and walked away, but he hollered at me again. "Sam. Don't worry. I'll be back."

I smiled at him. "You better." I turned back and walked to the house, going to see if Patricia needed any help with anything. I glanced back behind my shoulder one last time to see Daryl standing around the truck with the others, planning a route to search for Sophia. But he seemed to not be paying too much attention, because I caught him looking in my direction.

Patricia was sitting at the kitchen table crying, with Beth holding her hand beside her. I felt like I was intruding, so I went to turn away when she called my name. "Samantha, I didn't see you there. I'm sorry you have to see me like this. It's just so damn hard." She said, her voice cracking. I shook my head.

"Don't apologize, I know this is hard on you. If you need to cry, then you cry. There's nothing wrong with it. Merle used to always tell me that I was such a girl for crying, and it made me weak, but I don't think that's true. We're all human, we all have emotion." I sat down at the table beside her, holding her other hand.

She looked at me with her watery eyes, the white around them bloodshot. Her smile was shaky, but she squeezed my hand, letting me know how thankful she was. "Now what happened to Merle? I remember Glenn saying that the antibiotics came for Merle's brother. If you don't mind me asking."

I sighed sadly. "Daryl was the one that found me. I was wandering around in the woods by myself for God knows how long, and I ended up following him around one day. He brought me back to camp, where I met Merle and Shane and Lori and everyone. Merle was a dirty old pervert who didn't have any manners and didn't give a shit about what anyone else had to say. He became my best friend, and he was always there for me. Then one day, he went to Atlanta on a run.

He had apparently always had a problem with drugs, and they said that he was really bad that day. Dangerous, running around, shooting his gun for now reason. I wasn't there for him. But Rick showed up, and handcuffed him to the roof of a building. T-Dog lost the key. So they left him, alone. They went back for him, but he had cut his own hand off so he could get off of that roof. And now we don't know where he is, or if he's still alive." I said, letting a tear slide down my face.

"Did you love him?" Beth asked. I chuckled.

"Everyone always asks me that. Merle was my best friend, I loved him like he was my own flesh and blood. He might have been an asshole most of the time, and he was, but I still cared for him. But now he's gone. It's just me and Daryl."

Patricia smiled a little. "I saw the two of you when he first got here. You love him. I'm pretty sure he loves you just the same." I opened my mouth to speak, but Maggie came running in the house.

"Samantha, can you come here? We all need to see this." Patricia and Beth didn't want to go, so I ran out there with Maggie. She ran all the way to the well, where Dale was shining his flashlight down into. A walker was in the bottom, bloated from the water that had absorbed into its skin.

My stomach churned, and I turned to the side and threw up what little bit of food I had in my stomach. I wiped the excess off of my mouth and turned back to the group as they were trying to devise a plan to get rid of the walker. They wanted to tie Glenn to the rope and lower him down. He didn't argue.

"Guys this is nuts!" I exclaimed. I didn't want Glenn getting hurt, I liked Glenn.

"Are you volunteering to go?" Shane asked, looking up from the knot he was tying around Glenn.

Andrea scoffed. "So we can face the wrath of Daryl Dixon when he gets back? I don't want to have to deal with his redneck ass." I glared at him, but kept my mouth shut. Knowing Shane, he might just push my ass in the well.

They lowered Glenn down in the well and I covered my eyes, feeling fearful. I couldn't imagine how terrified Glenn must be. I could hear the walker snarling and growling, and I held my breath. Glenn let out a yell and I gasped, looking down into the well. Maggie screamed as they lost control of the rope and Glenn went sailing down into the well, and I dove onto the ground to help hold the rope.

Tears filled my eyes as he screamed. "Get me out guys! Get me out!" I pulled as hard as I could, and I sighed with relief as he hit the dirt. Dale sighed.

"Back to the drawing board." He said, kicking at the dirt. Glenn gave him a little smirk as he stood up.

"Says you." He handed him the rope, and we all gasped as the walker pulled on it.

"Glenn, you're amazing!" I cheered, and he waved at me as he walked away. That was so brave of him. "Now how are we going to get it out?" I asked, looking down in the well.

We all tugged on the rope, pulling the bloated walker out of the well. The body got stuck on the rocks, and before we knew what happened, the body split in two. I groaned and turned my head, but I could still hear the splashing of its organs hitting the well water.

"Well, goddamn." I muttered, throwing the rope on the ground. T-Dog ran over and immediately began angrily beating its face in.

"Good thing we didn't do anything stupid like shoot it."

Daryl came home not too long after that, and I ran in his direction. Before I could reach him, he held one finger up to me. I stopped, confused. He opened the door to the RV and went inside, and I quietly followed after him.

Carol was sitting in there, and Daryl dropped a flower in a vase. "A flower?"

"A Cherokee rose. The story is, that when American soldiers were movin' the Indians off their land on the Trail of Tears, the Cherokee mothers were grievin' and cryin' so much because they were losin' their little ones along the way from exposure and disease and starvation. A lot of them jus' disappeared. So the elders said a prayer and asked for a sign to uplift the mother's spirits and give them strength, hope. The next day, this rose started to grow right where their tears fell. I'm not foolish enough to think that there are any flowers out there growing fer my brother, but I believe this one bloomed fer yah little girl." He told her. I sniffled, wiping away the tears that had fallen from my eyes.

He walked out of the RV to find me waiting. He wrapped one arm around my shoulder and pulled my head down, giving me a gently noogie. "Ya just couldn't wait, could ya? Ya nosy bitch." He said, and I wrapped my arm around his torso.

"I missed you too, you mean old bastard."


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead! I only own Samantha.

I hope everyone is enjoying this story! I'm really enjoying writing it! This chapter is based off of season two, episode five, "Chupacabra." Enjoy!

I had stuck by Daryl's side all evening since he made it back to the farm, and I had actually fell asleep in his tent that night. When I woke up the next morning, one of my legs was in between both of Daryl's, and his arm was slung lazily around my waist. I sighed contently, knowing that once he woke up, the moment would be over.

"Sam?" Damn it. His voice was rough and heavy with sleep.

"Mornin' Daryl." I said, turning my head slightly so I could see his face. He looked shocked now that he was finally waking up. His cheeks turned a light shade of pink, and I grinned. "Look how cute you are when you blush." I teased, touching his cheek lightly.

He reached up and grabbed my wrist, pulling my hand away from his face. He held my wrist gently in his large hand, and I felt my heart pound in my chest as we held eye contact. "Yer a pervert. Sleepin' in my bed, touchin' me without my consent." He said, his voice rough, but this time it wasn't with sleep.

I felt my eyes widen a fraction at his words, but then he gave me a little smirk. "I'm jus' screwin' with ya, Sam." He said, dropping my wrist. My face was burning with embarrassment and I scrambled to stand up and make my way out of the tent. I heard the faint sound of his chuckles as I ran the other way.

Lori and Carol were at the clothes line, hanging up the wet laundry. "Oh no! I forgot it was laundry day." I apologized to the two women, and they both smiled at me.

"I just woke up myself." Lori said, shrugging her shoulders.

"I can manage. I had an idea to run by the two of you. Their big kitchen got me thinking, I'd love to cook in a real kitchen again. Maybe we can all pitch in and cook for Hershel and his family tonight." Carol explained, and I grinned.

"That would be fun! It would be good for everyone. A little bit of normalcy." Lori agreed with me.

"It's the least we could do, after everything they've done for us."

"Could you extend the invitation?" Carol asked Lori, and she wondered why. "Well, you're Rick's wife. Kind of makes you the unofficial First Lady." Lori grinned at that. I blushed as Daryl came walking by me, and Lori and Carol both seemed to have noticed. I felt his shoulder brush mine when he passed, and I watched him walk away.

They were huddled around the truck, planning trails to go look for Sophia. The two women were still staring at me, and I bent down, picking up and armful of wet clothes to hang up. "I actually saw you run out of his tent this morning, looking pretty flustered." Lori pointed out, and I flung a wet shirt at her.

"I was so happy that he was back last night that I didn't want to leave him. So, I was in there last night and we were just talking, and I probably just fell asleep in there and he didn't want to wake me up." Carol giggled and Lori gave me a look.

"You were talking? Daryl Dixon does not seem like the type of person that would 'just talk.' He seems more like the type of guy that wants action." Lori said, and I shook my head.

"He's never tried anything with me." I said, my voice slightly bitter. The girls gave me sympathetic looks, and I shrugged it off. "His loss, right?"

Daryl and the group left not too long after that. I did busy work with Lori and Carol, enjoying their company. I waved at Glenn as he approached Lori and me, and he marched straight up to Lori. "You're pregnant." I gasped. Lori stared at him with hard eyes.

"Don't you dare tell anyone." She demanded, turning around and looking at Shane and Rick walking down the road.

"I just had a long talk with Shane." Rick said.

"I don't mean to interrupt, but this isn't my business. Lori, I'll see you in a little bit, I'll go see what all they have in the kitchen for dinner." She smiled at me and Rick gave me a respectful nod.

Daryl groaned as he woke up, his body and head aching profusely. He heard footsteps approaching. "This is it." He muttered, thinking it was a walker.

"Why don't yah pull the arrow out, dummy? Yah could bind that wound better." Daryl gave a little grin when he realized who the voice belonged to.

"Merle. Sam would kill to hear yah right about now." He whispered, thinking of how excited the pretty little girl would react.

Merle gave a big grin, remembering his best friend. "What's goin on here? Yah taking a siesta or somethin'?"

"I'm having a shitty day, bro." Daryl replied. It hadn't been all bad though. He woke up all tangled up with Samantha. Merle got smart, asking if he wanted a pillow or a foot massage. "Screw yah."

"Screw me? Yah sure that I would be yer first choice? I'm surprised yah didn't pick our little princess, she's quite a catch." Merle retorted, and Daryl was silent. "I knew yah had a thing for her, I could jus tell. Yah hated when we would get too close, when I made her laugh too hard. It wasn't a secret, Darylina. Yah need to get yer shit together man, and get back to her. She can't live without both of us." Daryl took a deep breath before pushing himself off the ground. For Samantha.

I stood in the kitchen with Patricia, Beth, Lori, and Carol. I was peeling potatoes over the trash can. "I love this kitchen." I told Patricia, who smiled at me in thanks.

"Thank you again for letting us use it." Carol said. I saw Hershel in the dining room talking to Maggie, and he didn't look too happy. I shook my head. He was so uncomfortable with us here.

I kept glancing out the window, looking for Daryl. He still wasn't back yet. I didn't want him to be out in the dark. Andrea was sitting on top of the RV, keeping a look out. I saw a figure appear from the woods, and I dropped my potato. I sprinted out of the kitchen, ignoring the calls of the other women.

Daryl was limping through the fields. Andrea cocked her gun and took aim. She pulled the trigger. "Andrea, goddammit!" I screamed at her as I sprinted past. "That was Daryl!" Tears were streaming down my face as I ran.

Daryl was lying on his back, covered in blood and dirt and grime. "Daryl." I said, wiping the tears away.

"I was kidding." He said, touching the spot where the bullet brushed his skin. Andrea came running to us as they helped Daryl stand up, and that's when he lost consciousness.

"Is he dead?" She asked, and I glared.

"You're gonna wish he was." She gave me an exasperated look.

"I didn't know it was him." T-Dog held up a doll.

"Isn't this Sophia's?" I grinned at Daryl's body.

"You son of a bitch."

They laid him in a bed upstairs so Hershel could look him over and he could rest. I sat in the kitchen anxiously. Hershel had asked me to step out. My foot tapped on the floor and my whole body shook slightly.

"He'll be fine." Carol assured me, kissing the top of my head. She had Sophia's dirt covered doll in her hand. I sniffed and nodded. Rick came into the kitchen. "He's okay, you can go see him." I sighed with relief.

Hershel was standing outside of the door, and I placed my hand on his shoulder. "Thank you, sir. I know that you're probably tired of us and tired of taking care of us, but I appreciate this more than anything. You have no idea how important that man is to me. And I will be eternally grateful for this." He nodded solemnly at me.

I opened the door quietly and he was lying down on his side, holding an ice pack against his head. "Can't a guy get some rest? Sam." He said, realizing it was me.

"Hi Daryl." I sat down beside him on the bed, gently taking hold of the ice pack so he could lay his arm down. "You're an idiot." I continued, and he snorted but didn't say anything. "Are you okay? Seriously?" I asked, leaning down to look at his head.

"I'm fine. I gotta .. I gotta tell you somethin'. When I was out there, I was really messed up. Thought I was done. But then, Merle was there. He was there, givin' me shit about being weak and how I needed to get back here. For you." I let go off the ice pack and walked to the other side of the bed, gently crawling beside him.

I placed my back against his chest and he carefully wrapped an arm around me. "I'm glad you made it back for me." I told him quietly, picking up his hand and kissing it. I laid there for a while, until his breathing started to slow. I planned on getting up and going back downstairs, but I didn't want to leave his arms. I closed my eyes and tried to match my breathing with his, until I heard the door open. He jumped awake and released his grasp on me.

"I brought you both some dinner." The voice belonged to Carol. I stayed quiet as I listened to their conversation, and smiled as Daryl put his arm back around my waist when Carol left.

"We'll eat in a little bit." He said, and I nodded in agreement.

"I'm not in a hurry."


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead! I only own Samantha!

This chapter is based off of season two episode six, "Secrets." I hope everyone enjoys it!

Daryl was the most stubborn patient any doctor could probably ever have. He refused to take any medicine that they offered him, because he said he did not need it. He said he did not need to have everyone coming in and checking on him, because he was fine. He did not protest much when I came in the room, he would just slide over on the bed.

I could see that his wounds were healing nicely. The bullet that grazed his head left quite a mark, and I knew it would probably scar. He wouldn't let me check the marks that were under his shirt, and that was a big disappointment. I would love to get the chance to rub my hands all over his body.

I helped him pack up a few of his things when he decided he wanted to go back outside to his tent. "Jus' because I'm hurt don't make me no damn cripple." He defended himself, pushing me gently out of his way. I chuckled.

"No one ever said you were a cripple. But you are supposed to be taking it easy. I don't know why you just won't stay inside just for a few more days. You could use the rest." I tried to coerce him, placing my soft hand on his rough, tan arm.

He scoffed. "I rest jus' fine outside, in my tent." I didn't argue with him. I unzipped his tent and watched as he walked in and gently laid himself down on the bed. I placed his bag beside him, taking the dirty clothes out of it.

"I'm going to wash these. They're absolutely filthy. Do you need me to get you anything before I go?" I asked him, and he just grunted and rolled over. I rolled my eyes and left the tent, his dirty clothes in my hand. Glenn was standing over next to Maggie, and they looked like they were arguing about something.

I washed Daryl's clothes carefully, trying to make sure I got all of the blood and grime out of them. I held up one particularly filthy shirt. It was the one he had been wearing when he fell off of the horse, impaled himself on his own arrow, and got shot in the head by Andrea. I sighed and dunked it down in the water, deciding to leave that one in there to soak.

Once I had finished and hung them up on the clothes line to dry, I noticed Andrea sitting in Daryl's tent. I scowled. She gave me a weak smile as she left, and I nodded in return. "What was she doing?" I asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"She brought me this book. And she said she was sorry." He told me, holding the book in his hand. I reached out and snatched it, flipping through the pages.

"What, no pictures?" I joked, tossing it back to him. He snorted a little.

"Exactly what I said." I watched the guys stand around the truck, which is where they always planned their routes to find Sophia. Patricia and Beth joined the group of men, which confused me. They were not going to look for Sophia, that's for damn sure.

"Go see what's goin' on. I'll be fine." Daryl told me, and I hesitated before leaning over, kissing his cheek, and exiting the tent. They were asking Rick for shooting lessons, but he denied their request, saying he needed to ask Hershel first.

"Rick. I'd be interested in that too, if you wouldn't mind teaching me." He grinned at me, but then he glanced in the direction of Daryl's tent.

"Does Daryl know about you wanting to do this?" I rolled my eyes.

"I don't need Daryl's permission to do anything, I'm a big girl. Besides, what he doesn't know what hurt him." I winked, and Rick shook his head, chuckling.

"Okay. Let's go." Shane and Rick drove us out to a clearing, where they propped glass bottles up on the fence posts. I held the gun tightly in my hand, cursing when I missed the first few times.

"Don't get discouraged." Rick patted my shoulder as he walked by. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, before opening them and focusing on the target. I pulled the trigger, squealing with delight when my glass bottle exploded.

"Good job, Sam!" T-Dogg said, clapping me on my shoulder. I was beaming with pride. I took aim again. I loved the feeling it gave me. The adrenaline. I loved the noise of the bottle bursting, and the feeling of the kickback. I could smell the gunpowder in the air.

Rick laughed at me when we got back to camp. "You look about as proud of yourself as Carl does." He said, gesturing to the small boy beside me. I laughed loudly and ruffled Carl's brown hair.

"What can I say? We're badass." I said, turning around and walking to Daryl's tent. He was laying on his side, twisting and twirling an arrow inbetween his fingers.

"Hi Daryl." I said, sitting down beside him. He turned over and looked at me, raising an eyebrow at my excited features. "We were practicing our shooting. I hit almost all of my targets!" I told him, hoping that he would be proud of me.

"That's nothin' special. Anyone can do that. You try any movin' targets?" He asked, and I shook my head. He scoffed and didn't say anything else. I felt my blood begin to boil, and I stood up.

"Sorry I bothered you." I told him, and I heard him yell my name as I stomped off. "Dumb bastard." I growled. I didn't know what to do with myself now. I had been so excited to come home and tell Daryl about my accomplishment. His clothes were still hanging on the line, but I didn't want to have to go back to his tent now to take them to him.

Dale saw me stomping by, and he called my name. "Samantha. What's going on?" He asked me, and I sighed.

"Daryl. I went with Rick and Shane when they were showing the others how to shoot, and I did really well. I was so proud of myself, and I wanted Daryl to be proud of me, too. But when I told him, he just blew me off, not giving a damn about me." I angrily wiped away the bitter tears that were welling in my eyes, and Dale put his arm around my shoulder. I leaned into his embrace.

"Samantha, it was probably nothing personal. He's been stuck in that house for days, and now he's stuck in that tent. You know how he is, he likes to be constantly doing stuff. He's probably just getting cabin fever. You need to talk to him, he'll apologize. I know he will." Dale told me, and I smiled up at him.

"Thanks, Dale." He smiled back.

"Anytime."

Maggie and Glenn came back from town just then, and I saw Maggie practically sprint towards Lori. She was screaming at her, throwing objects down on the ground. "And here's your abortion pills!" She screeched, picking them up off the ground and throwing them at Lori.

Glenn chased after Maggie, leaving Lori standing there alone. I sighed, and shook my head. Maggie had blood on her shirt, so I knew that something had to have happened while she was in town with Glenn. Lori picked her objects up off of the ground and went into her tent, not even acknowledging the fact that I was there.

I sighed and started taking Daryl's clothes off of the line. They were clean and dry, and I folded them neatly and placed them in the basket. Andrea and Shane pulled back into big driveway in front of the farm, and they were both wearing shit eating grins. Something had happened between the two of them while they were gone.

I shook my head. This group had too much drama and baggage. I took Daryl's clothes over to his tent and unzipped it slowly, walking back inside. I took the clothes out of the basket and sat them on the ground. He didn't say anything to me.

I took a deep breath, wanting to rip into him and tell him off. "Sam?" He started, and I lifted my head.

"Yeah, Daryl?" I asked, standing up and picking up the basket.

"I'm sorry." His voice was gruff. He wasn't used to having to apologize to anyone.

"I know, Daryl. It's okay." I assured him, smiling to myself. I dropped the basket back down on the ground and laid down beside Daryl. He turned on his opposite side carefully so he could face me, and I began to tell him about the things that I had overheard today from our people.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead! I only own Samantha!

This episode is based off of season two, episode seven, "Pretty Much Dead Already." Enjoy!

The next morning, we all sat around our little fire pit, eating breakfast. Daryl was sitting in a camping chair, and I was perched on the ground beside him. He nodded at Carol as she scooped the rest of the eggs onto his plate. He needed to eat plenty so he would heal quickly.

No one said anything for the majority of the morning until Glenn stood up. "So, the barn is full of walkers." He blurted out, and we all gave him unbelieving looks.

"The barn?" I gasped, thinking about all of the times I had walked by it without knowing. Daryl glanced over at me before turning his attention back to Glenn.

"Well, let's go check this out for ourselves." Shane said. When we arrived at the barn, we all hung back while he went and squinted in between the cracks in the wood. The moans were faintly heard. "You can't be okay with this!" Shane said to Rick.

"No I'm not, but this isn't our land." He tried to reason with Shane, but there was no reasoning with that man, especially when he got fired up like this. I walked up to it slowly, wanting to see it for myself. I stopped right in front of barn when I heard Daryl yelling at Shane.

"I found her doll, man!" He argued, and Shane threw his hands up, exasperated.

"You found a _doll._ " They continued to argue until Daryl got in Shane's face, and he attempted to throw punches.

"Can we have this argument somewhere else? Preferably not in front of a barn full of goddammned walkers? Idiot ass people." I said, turning on my heel and walking off as they stared fearfully at the door holding back the moaning walkers.

Carol was in tears at the discussion of her daughter, and I would talk to her back at the house. It wasn't safe to be yelling and screaming outside the barn, it would only draw the attention of the walkers.

The group followed behind me as I stomped off, and I knew Daryl would be spitting fire. He brushed past me, going straight for the horses. "Daryl Dixon!" I exclaimed, but Carol was right behind him. He was getting the horse ready to go out, and I heard Carol muttering to him. I didn't say anything as I watched the exchange between the two, jealousy brewing inside my gut.

He slung the saddle across the ground, groaning as he did so. That was when I got involved. "Daryl, you idiot! What are you doing?" I sighed, and I heard him mutter, "stupid bitch."

"Excuse me?" I demanded, catching up with his retreating figure.

"Ain't talkin' about you. Talkin' about _her._ Said she didn't want me goin' out there cause she didn't wanna lose me, too." He glanced over at me out of the corner of his eye, and I was ashamed to

"She acts like you're her boyfriend." I muttered, the bitterness obvious in my voice. He turned to me and raised an eyebrow.

"You act like you're jealous." I felt my cheeks burn with embarrassment, and I refused to make eye contact with him.

"Jealous? Why would I be jealous? It's not like we're together." I said, feeling the heat move down my neck. Daryl didn't say anything then, and when I looked up at him, I dared to think that I saw a very faint blush on his tanned cheeks.

"I just wanna find that damn girl." He said after a few minutes of us walking together silently.

Shane was continuing to patrol the barn, and Glenn was standing on top of the RV, keeping watch. He was wearing Dale's hat, which made me chuckle. "That's a cute look." I told him jokingly, and he rolled his eyes.

"Ha ha. You're hilarious. I just needed a hat while I was on watch. Maggie kinda .. cracked an egg in my hat and put it back on my head." He told me, looking embarrassed. I threw my head back and laughed, before getting a serious face again.

"Is it because you told us about the walkers in the barn?" Glenn nodded sadly. "But you know it was the right thing to do, Glenn. Those things out there are a danger to us. They could break down those doors any minute." I saw him swallow nervously as he imagined that.

"I know. I just wish it wouldn't have been my responsibility to tell you guys." I shielded the sun from my eyes as I looked up at him.

"Glenn, you're a good guy. And if Maggie is going to let this ruin things for the two of you, then so be it, because it's her loss." I told him, giving him a big grin. He gave a sheepish grin in return, and I waved to him as I walked away.

Rick was stomping out of Hershel's house towards the barn, and I knew he was going to talk to Shane. Those two were trouble when they were together, because all they seemed to do nowadays is argue about everything under the sun.

I wasn't sure where Daryl had gone, but I knew he would turn up eventually. He always disappeared when he was angry, and I always had a small feeling of fear in my gut that something else would happen, but he always came back.

I wandered around, looking for some busy work. Lori was sitting on a stump, cutting carrots. "Hi Lori, do you mind if I help you? I've been going nuts trying to find something to do." She grinned at me.

"I could always use some help." I sat down on my butt in the grass and grabbed a bunch of the carrots that were in the wooden basket. She handed me another knife, and we sat in comfortable silence as we sliced the vegetables.

"Lori, are you okay? I don't mean to pry or sound rude, but you don't look well." I said, referring to the dark bags under her eyes. She sighed, sitting down the knife and gently rubbing her hand over his face.

"I found out that I'm pregnant. And I don't know whether or not to have the baby, because look at this place. We thought we were safe here, but now we find out that there is a secret hoard of walkers locked away. This isn't the life for a baby." I nodded, taking in everything that she was saying.

"I'm not going to tell you what to do. This is your body and your baby. If you don't want the baby to live in this world, that is your decision. And if you do want it, then that's fine, too. Just know that I'm here to help you no matter what you choose." I said, continuing to cut the carrots nonchalantly.

Her eyes had filled with tears, and I smiled at her as she wiped them away.

"Thank you." She said, and I nodded in response. Shane came over then, walking at a brisk pace. He stopped beside the log, giving me a look.

"I guess that's my que to leave." I stood up, brushing the back of my pants off to remove the dirt. I didn't want to hang around and be nosy because Shane could be quite intimidating. I still hadn't seen Daryl, and I hadn't seem Carol for awhile either. It made me suspicious.

We were all sitting on the porch later that day when we saw it. Maggie and Glenn were canoodling on the stairs, and the rest of us were just enjoying each other's company. Daryl and Carol came out of the woods together, and I raised my eyebrows.

He began ranting about the trail he had for finding Sophia, and everyone else began to wonder about Rick's whereabouts when Shane showed up. He began passing out guns, and I reached out and grabbed one. Maggie gave me a look of betrayal, but I didn't let it bother me. I wasn't going to die because of their mistakes.

"Oh shit." T Dog said. Rick was leading a walker into the field. It was attached to a metal pole with a collar around its neck. Hershel had one as well. We all sprinted over to the scene, not believing our eyes. Shane was the quickest, and he exploded in a rage of anger.

"Hershel, let me ask you something. Can a livin', breathin', person survive this?" He began peppering the walker with bullets, but it didn't fall. "That's three rounds in the chest!" I gasped as he began screaming louder and he walked up to the walker and shot it in the head.

"This is a bunch of bullshit." I said, loud enough for the Greene family to hear. They all looked at me with teary eyes. Shane ran over to the barn and busted the doors open. I held my gun up, no hesitation, and walked over beside him. "This is bullshit if you let them live! Come on!" I screamed, shooting at each one I could.

The others ran up beside us, shooting at the rotten bodies. We shot and shot at them, but they continued to come out. It seemed to be never ending. Rick still hadn't pulled his gun out, and he continued to yell at us to stop.

The bodies were dropping like flies. Time seemed to slow down as they kept coming out of the barn, and when we finally thought it was over, we saw her. A tiny, partially decomposed body walked out of the barn, wearing a little rainbow shirt.

Carol was sobbing from behind us, and she ran towards her daughter. Daryl caught her and pinned her to the ground, not wanting her to go after the girl. Sophia stumbled over the rest of the corpses to get to us, and I felt the tears spill out of my eyes. Carol's sobs hurt my heart, and I knew that Daryl had to be hurting as well.

Rick walked up to young Sophia, putting a bullet in her head. The first walker he killed that came out of that barn, and it had to be her. He stared down at her body as her mother wailed in the background, and I dropped to my knees.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead! I only own Samantha.

This chapter is based off of season two, episode eight, "Nebraska." Enjoy!

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Daryl helped pulled the sobbing mother off of the ground, chanting in her ear. "Don't look. Don't look." The Greene's were distraught as well, and when Beth went to look at the corpses, one jumped up and grabbed ahold of her.

She screamed, and we all jumped into action. Andrea was the one who stopped the walker. I sighed as I stood there, looking at the dead, rotting corpses. "We've been combing through these woods, and she was in there all along?" Shane demanded, chasing after the Greene family.

"Leave us alone!" Maggie demanded, but Shane was a persistent bastard. He continued to chase after them as I glared from afar. Maggie caught my eye, and I felt a pang of guilt in my chest, but I quickly brushed that feeling aside.

I didn't care if it ruined my friendship with her. Keeping those walkers in the barn was a stupid thing of them to do, and the fact that Sophia was in there made it even worse. I didn't need friends like that. Friends that protected those .. monsters. I didn't care if they were family members or not. They were walkers, and they needed to be put down.

I had to do it to my family.

Andrea covered up Sophia's body with a blanket, and Daryl entered the RV to talk to the mother. I patiently waited outside, not wanting to intrude. Sophia meant a lot to all of us, but Daryl was so determined to find the poor girl.

A service was planned for Sophia later that day. We were to honor the Greene family members as well, but I wasn't totally sure if they would even come for that.

Everyone was on edge that day, mostly Rick and Shane. They seemed ready to snap on anyone, and I heard them yelling quite a few times as the day when on. Digging the graves was a difficult task, and I could feel my shirt being soaked through with sweat.

I followed Lori into the RV. "They're ready." I said.

"Come on." Lori urged, her voice quiet.

"Why?" Carol choked out.

"Because that's yer lil girl." Daryl said. I placed my hand on his tanned arm.

"That's not my little girl. That's some other … thing. My Sophia was alone in the woods. All this time I thought .. she didn't cry herself to sleep. She didn't go hungry. She didn't try to find her way back. Sophia died a long time ago."

My heart throbbed. Lori and I left the RV, Daryl following in tow. I paid my respects for all the deceased, before heading into the house. My head was pounding, and I just needed a moment of silence to gather my thoughts.

I sat on the couch in the living room, holding my head in my hands. I could feel the pain slowly ebbing away, but I jumped as a loud noise resounded through the house. I jumped up and quickly followed the footsteps of Maggie and Glenn as they ran up the stairs.

"I think she's in shock." I heard them say. Beth laid on the bed, stoic and still. Maggie ran off to tell her father, but she said he was gone.

"I'll stay with Beth." I volunteered, and she gave me a weak smile. I nodded in response to her smile, still feeling bitter and angry.

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Daryl came inside the house looking for me. "Sam, what are yah doin?" I smiled, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. I must have dozed off while I was watching Beth.

"I was just sittin' here with Beth. They said she's in shock. Just waiting for her to wake up or snap out of it." He nodded.

"Lori came to me. Askin' me to go get Rick and Hershel." I raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to continue. I know he wouldn't have been kind to Lori. "I told her I had better things to do. She called me selfish."

I sighed, wrapping my arms around him. He didn't hug back right away, but he awkwardly placed his hands on my back. "Daryl, you have to be one of the most selfless people I know. You went out there and risked your life for Sophia. You got shot by Andrea and impaled by your own arrow." He didn't say anything, but his grip on my shirt tightened.

"If you don't want to go get Rick, it's fine. He is a grown ass man and he is not your responsibility." I told him sternly, looking up into his eyes. His blue eyes stared into what felt like my soul, and I felt my heart begin to pound in my chest.

I swallowed loudly, and his eyes flickered down to my lips. "Daryl." I muttered, and that seemed to break him out of his trance.

"Sam, I gotta go." He said, letting go of me and backing out the door quickly. I groaned, flopping back down into the chair I had been sitting in. He came in here and got me all riled up and nervous.

I hoped that Rick and Hershel made it back unscathed. I couldn't deal with anymore losses today.

Maggie walked into the room quietly and slowly, not making eye contact with me. I stood up and proceeded to walk out of the room, but she stopped me. "Samantha, don't be mad at me." She begged. "I didn't know that Sophia was in the barn."

"But there were still a shit ton of walkers in there. That's still an issue. You kept that from me!" I exclaimed, and she frowned.

"They weren't hurting anyone!" She defended, and I scoffed.

"But they could have. Imagine if they would've got out. They could've got anyone of us." I growled, my anger building.

"Sam .. they were my family." She said, her voice quiet.

"Mags, I had to kill my own. That's something that you all have to be responsible for, but we had to take it into our own hands." She frowned.

"You had to kill your own family?" She asked.

"Mom was a doctor. She went to work one day, and came home with a bite on her arm. We didn't think anything of it at first, she said it was just a crazed patient. She got tested for any diseases and she got a tetanus shot, and she planned on going back the next morning to get her results.

When I woke up the next morning, the house was really quiet. It was normally quiet in the mornings, but this was eerie. I opened my bedroom and went downstairs, expecting to see my mom, or my dad, or my brother. His name was Steven. He was fourteen. I didn't see anyone, so I went back upstairs when I heard the sound. It sounded like someone was eating something, but it was a gross, wet sound. Mom was in Steven's room, his body still lying on his bed.

She had pulled most of his small intestine out, and it was coiled on the ground. She was munching and pulling the remaining flesh off, shoving it into her mouth. There was .. so much blood. She must have heard me, because she turned around. Her eyes were wide and wild, and her jaws were still chewing up chunks of my brother. I slammed the door, but I heard her still clawing. I went downstairs and got a knife, before I went upstairs and took care of it.

Dad was in their bedroom, and I took care of him and Steven both. I had a feeling bad things would happen if I didn't." Maggie was listening to the story with teary eyes, and when I finished she wrapped her arms around me.

"I haven't told anyone about that other than Merle and Daryl." I admitted, wiping the tears off of my cheeks. She sobbed into my shoulder for a few minutes, and I stood there, letting my own tears continue to fall.

"Please, don't hate me." She cried, and I shook my head.

"Mags, I could never hate you." I said, holding her body tightly. She was a comfort. I relished in the fact that she was feeling my pain, so I could have someone understand how I felt. This new life was hard, and I wasn't sure how we would make it through it, but I was just happy we could make it through together.


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead! I only own Samantha!

This chapter is based on season two, episode nine, "Triggerfinger." Enjoy!

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Nighttime rolled around, and Rick wasn't back with Hershel. Lori wasn't at the farm either, because her dumbass went after Rick on her own. "What if something happens to her?" Dale asked, his eyes nervously flicking over to Lori's son. Carl kept a stoic expression on his face.

I sighed, running my fingers through my hair. Dale gave me a look, but I didn't say anything.

Everyone left the dinner table, and I sighed, looking forlornly at the food steaming in front of us. I was starving. "Eat." Daryl told me, spooning a large portion of beans onto my plate. I smiled and began to eat my food. He didn't put anything on his plate, and I frowned, holding a spoonful of beans up to his mouth.

"Open up~." I cooed, making him scowl.

"Don't touch me." He said, turning his head away from my utensil.

"Come on, Daryl! You need to eat somethin'!" He refused to open his mouth. I sighed, standing up and walking around his chair. I grabbed his head gently, turning it to face me. He looked shocked at my actions, and I gave him a shit-eating grin. He opened his mouth to say something, and I took the opportunity to shove the spoon in his mouth.

I laughed at his expression, but he chewed the beans and swallowed them nonetheless. "There. That's much better." I said, throwing my head back and laughing joyfully. He watched me carefully. "What?" I asked, calming myself down.

"Never seen yah laugh like that." He said, scrutinizing my face. I didn't say anything. I shoved another spoonful of beans in my mouth and turned my head slightly so my hair hid the blush on my cheeks. Once I had finished my food, he stood up, going outside to the others.

Not too long after Daryl left, Carol came back into the house. "Did you know that Lori had left?" She asked. I nodded and she gasped. "Why wouldn't you tell someone?"

"It's not my business. She asked Daryl to go for her, and he said no. She was pissed so she left. Rick is a grown man, he can handle his own shit." I scoffed, and she didn't say anything. She seemed disappointed in me.

"Shane went to go get her." She told me before walking out. I rolled my eyes. Shane and his nosy ass was getting involved, big surprise there. Daryl was sitting out by his tent, a warm fire blazing. I plopped down beside him, scooting close to the fire.

"Didn't invite you." He said.

"I don't need an invitiation." I retorted, and he grunted. Carol made her way over to his tent.

"Second time she's been over here already." He groaned, getting up and confronting her as she looked at the clothesline. "Well, ain't you a peach." He told her as she admitted to keeping an eye on him.

"I'm not gonna let you pull away. You've earned your place." He got pissed off, and started yelling at her. He got in her face, yelling rude comments about her being alone, no husband and no daughter.

"Daryl." I said, stepping forward and placing a hand on his arm.

"Sophia wasn't mine!" He shouted. Carol remained silent. She seemed to be in a trance. She noticed car lights pulling in, and she sprinted off.

"Lori!" She exclaimed, pulling the woman into a hug. I grabbed Daryl's hand.

"Man, you need to calm down. You know it ain't her fault that Sophia ran off. She feels guilty enough." He scowled. "Don't be getting mad at me now, I know what that look means." I placed my opposite hand on his tanned face, and he stiffened. "I think you're doing a great job here, helping everyone."

He turned his head away, knocking my hand off of his cheek. "Don't need yah to tell me that." He said, and I smiled. He was so against receiving compliments and acknowledgements. He stomped off into his tent for the night, and I walked away, shaking my head.

The next morning, Beth was still laying stoic in the bed. She was dehydrated and Patricia was going to set her up an IV. I pulled a chair up beside Maggie, and I laid my head on her shoulder. Andrea came in, and Maggie began telling a story.

"My first summer back from college, I drove home, dropped my stuff off, and went out to the stable. My family came home from church and Beth starts unpacking my things. She finds a little plastic container with pink and green candies inside. She didn't know I was on the pill. She was so freaking out by the idea of me and sex that she runs outside and throws them in the duck pond."

I started giggling, imagining a little blonde Beth crying and Maggie screaming at her for throwing her pills in the pond. "Sounds like you two were a handful." I commented, and she laughed tearfully.

A search party was planned to find Rick, Glenn, and Hershel. I opted out so I could stay with Maggie and Beth. As they were preparing to pile into the truck, and vehicle pulled into the driveway. "They're back!" I exclaimed.

Carl ran straight to Rick, wrapping his arms around him. Maggie went to Glenn, running straight past her father. Lori admitted that she was in a car accident, and I laughed quietly. She raised her eyebrows at me. "We're in the middle of an apocalypse. You were the only car on the road, and you still manage to wreck?" I asked, giggling to show Lori I wasn't being a total bitch, even though I thought the idea of it was idiotic.

She smiled weakly, nodding her head. "Tha's a woman driver for yah." Daryl retorted, and I smacked his stomach lightly. He smirked. "Weak ass." I rolled my eyes.

"Who's that?" Lori asked, pointing to the blindfolded man in the backseat.

"Randall." Rick said.

"We couldn't just leave him behind. He would've bled out." He said, and I shook my head. The pain must have been unimaginable. Daryl walked in the house, his hair seeming neater than usual. I winked at him jokingly, and a light shade of pink covered his cheeks.

I didn't hear the conversation due to my flirtation with Daryl, but my attention was grabbed when Shane stomped off. "He's so dramatic." I sighed, and a few of the others nodded. We all stood up from the table, and I rushed over to my Dixon.

"So, what's the plan for today?" I asked cheerfully, and he didn't turn to look at me.

" _We_ ain't got no plan." He said, but I ignored it.

"Wrong answer." I sang, skipping up beside him. I watched everyone carefully out of the corner of my eye. "What should we do about Randall?" I asked quietly, and that caught Daryl's attention.

"Kill his sorry ass." He replied, hoisting his crossbow higher on his shoulder. I sighed, nodding my head in agreement.

"Crossing our group was a mistake that he'll have to pay for."


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead. Only Samantha!

This chapter is based on season two, episode ten, "18 Miles Out."

The group was torn between what we should do with Randall. Of course, the most sensible thing was to kill him, but not everyone agreed with that. He was dangerous, and I did not trust him around my friends. Dale was the one that was adamant about keeping Randall alive.

I was in the kitchen with Lori and Maggie, deciding not to spend the whole day glued to Daryl's side. They were preparing lunch for Beth, and I hopped up and perched my behind on the counter. "Did Rick say anything about Glenn after they got back from town?" Lori shrugged.

"Just that it had been pretty bad."

"He's not the same. He froze and blames me, said I got inside his head." Maggie sighed, looking sad. I shook my head.

"He came back home to ya, and that's all that really matters." I supported my friend, and she gave me a weak smile. I snatched a cucumber slice off of the cutting board and nibbled on it, easing the hunger pains that were bubbling in my stomach. Lori explained how men did certain things and always put the blame on the woman.

"Don't say 'man up.' It never ends well." That made all of us laugh.

"Let me take this to Beth." Maggie said, but Lori stopped her and took it. I smiled at Maggie.

"How are things with you and Daryl?" She asked me, and I felt my cheeks heat up.

"There's really nothing between us." I argued, but she shook her head.

"I see how he watches you." She grinned, and I raised an eyebrow.

"And how does he watch me?" I asked.

"Like you belong to him. He watches you so protectively, like if the wind blows too hard, you'll just fall over and he wants to be ready to catch you." I snorted. If I was to fall for any reason it would because Daryl jokingly shoved me too hard. Merle would get a kick out of that, but then he might end up beating Daryl's ass.

"We're friends." I said, trying to make my voice sound stern.

"Are you talking about you and Daryl? You two are definitely more than friends." Lori said as she walked down the stairs. I shook my head, not wanting to get my hopes up. My feelings for the hardened redneck were definite, but no one could even guess how he feels. He was guarded, and his walls seemed damn near impossible to penetrate on some days.

"How was Beth?" Maggie asked after a few moments of silence.

"She was upset." Lori said, her voice sounding frustrated. I nodded my head.

"She's taking this hard." My own voice was quiet. Pitying. "I can go talk to her once she's done eating." I volunteered, and Maggie gave me a thankful look.

I had never really delved into my past with my group, but I had opened up to Maggie one late night about the dreams I had had for my future. I had finished high school, and I was ranked one of the top students in my class. I planned on going on to a fancy private school and study psychology. My passion was to understand why we felt the way we felt and how we could help control it and comprehend it. I was drawn to complicated people due to the fact that they seemed to have more hidden demons than the rest of us.

After around thirty minutes had passed, I went upstairs to see Beth. I knocked on her door but there was no response. I opened it cautiously. "Beth?" I asked. She sniffled. Her plate was still full of food. "You didn't eat anything?" She shook her head.

I sat down on the bed beside her, not saying a word. Beth looked at me with her big blue eyes and wrapped her arms around me. "It's so pointless." She told me. I inhaled sharply, but tried to play it off. She sounded defeated, like there was no solution. I closed my eyes, resting one of my hands on her hair.

"It's not pointless, honey. You have all of us here. You have Maggie, and your daddy, and you have me." I said, lifting her chin with my other hand. She gave me a watery smile.

"Thank you, Samantha. But I think I just want to be alone for right now, okay?" I gave her a soft smile.

"I'll come back later to check on you and we can talk." I suggested, and she nodded her head. I grabbed the tray and took it downstairs, walking past Lori who was standing at the counter.

"She didn't eat." She stated, and I sighed.

"She doesn't want to do anything." Lori took the tray and began clearing it off when she looked at me with large, scared eyes.

"What? Lori, what?" I yelled as the woman rushed away and up the stairs.

"Beth? Give it to me." She said, her voice quiet. The blonde girl lay in the bed on her side. I cautiously stood behind Lori, peering in at the scene. Beth reached out, not saying a word, and handed Lori a knife. I gasped.

"Samantha, can you go find Maggie or Hershel for me?" Lori asked me as we walked out of the room. "I'm going to stay here with Beth." I nodded, not wanting to leave the suicidal girl on her own. I jogged out of the house, not seeing anyone other than Andrea, standing on top of the RV.

"Hey, Andrea. Have you seen Maggie or Hershel?" I asked, slightly out of breath. She shook her head.

"I haven't seen Hershel, but Maggie and Glenn walked by not too long ago." I ran my hand through my hair, making it messier than it already was.

"If you see them again, could you tell them to come talk to Lori and me? It's real important." I asked, and once she agreed, I took back off towards the house. I sat down with Lori solemnly downstairs.

"This is bad. She needs help." I said. I thought Beth could overcome the trauma, but apparently not. Lori sighed. Maggie came busting into the house, and she grimaced when she saw the two of us at the table.

"What's going on?" She demanded, and I stood up.

"Maggie, Beth needs help. She took a knife earlier from when we took her lunch. She .. she wants to kill herself." I told the brunette, who looked at me like I was speaking a foreign language. Maggie ran up the stairs like a bat out of hell. I stayed downstairs, not wanting to intrude on the moment between the sisters.

Andrea came inside not too long after Maggie. She seemed unhappy that we were trying to keep Beth alive, and Lori was beginning to get angry. "Guys, this isn't our fight." I growled, getting frustrated with the bullshit.

I left the house, slamming the door behind me. Daryl was sitting on the porch, skinning a few squirrels that he had brought back. "Hey." I said, sitting down beside him. He raised an eyebrow at me.

"Yah alrigh'?" I scoffed.

"Just peachy." Daryl scowled at me.

"Listen girl, I didn' do nothin' to ya, so don't be takin yer shit out on me." He told me, his voice low.

"I'm sorry. I really am. I've just .. I've been sitting in there on suicide watch, and now Andrea and Lori are in there arguing about goddamn laundry. I'm just so tired of the bullshit that goes on around here." I leaned back, putting all of my weight on my hands.

"Suicide watch?" He looked shocked.

"Beth. She seems to think there's not any other way. There's always a light at the end of the tunnel." I said, and he snorted. "I don't think that killing herself is the best option."

"That's not really yer choice to make." Daryl said, busying himself by focusing on the meat in his hands.

"She's a kid, Daryl. She has her whole life ahead of her."

"A life? Ain't none of us gonna have a life now, with the world gone to shit." He exclaimed. I sighed, not wanting to argue with him.

"Daryl, I ain't trying to fight. I don't need you to be mad at me, not when you're the only one I got around here."

"The only one? Hell, everyone here loves you." He retorted.

"But you're the only one that matters, Daryl. You don't understand how much you mean to me." He would not meet my eyes. "These other people, I care about them. I do. But you .. you are the light at the end of my tunnel." I said, using my phrase from earlier. He looked at me then, the corner of his lips twitching slightly.

"Yer pretty alrigh' too, short stuff." He said, nudging me with his shoulder. I leaned into him as he finished skinning his catch for the day. My shoes were kicked off, lying on the ground. My feet dangled over the steps, my head resting against Daryl's shoulder. I glanced up at him when he wasn't looking, taking in the features of his face. He seemed at ease with us in this position, and I smiled to myself.

The sun began to sink and he went to stand up. "Gotta go get these cooked." He gestured to the squirrels. I nodded.

"Go ahead, I'll catch up in a minute." Daryl went inside, leaving me alone on the porch. I closed my eyes, missing the feel of his warmth beside me. My heart was content, however, with the feeling of comfort and compassion that was given to me by the hardened redneck in my time of need.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead or anything familiar!

This chapter is based on The Walking Dead, season two, episode eleven. "Judge, Jury, Executioner."

Thank you all for your patience with this story. Life gets busy! I'll try to keep up with them as much as I can! Much love!

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When I found Daryl the next morning, he was leaving the barn, his knuckles bloody. "Daryl." I muttered, reaching out for him. He jerked his arm away from me.

"Don't." He retorted, and I obliged. I wasn't going to push him. I followed behind him quietly, and he whipped around, his face angry. "Tha' goddamn kid! Thirty men in his group, goddamn rapists." He growled. I felt my expression soften.

He was worried that they would be coming for us. "Their daddy watched 'em rape their two girls." He snarled. I rested my hand gently on his tanned forearm.

"Daryl, don't you worry. We'll be fine. We have Rick, Shane, you. You'll protect us." He looked down at me out of the corner of his eye. We walked over to the group together, where they stood waiting.

He explained to them what was going on, and Carol spoke up. "What did you do?" She asked quietly, noticing the blood stains on his hand.

"We had a little chat." He said shortly, placing his bow on the ground. She turned away, not wanting to look at him.

"We have to eliminate the threat." Rick decided, and Dale watched him with wide eyes.

"So, we're just going to kill him?" He asked, and Rick nodded.

"It's settled. I'll do it today." The older gentleman scoffed. He followed after Rick as he walked away, and I sighed. He wasn't going to change Rick's mind, no matter what he said. When Rick made a decision, it was set in stone.

I looked up at Daryl while the group dispersed. "Let me clean that hand up. " He grunted, not giving me a glance.

"Ain't no point." He finally said, his voice low.

"Just .. let me do this, Daryl." I said, my voice gentle and quiet. I sat down beside him on the ground, reaching over and taking his tanned hand in my own. He was still a few shades darker than I was, even though I spent the same amount of time in the sun as he did.

I pulled a clean rag out of the laundry basket, before wetting it in the bucket of clean soapy water. I wrung the excess water out of the cloth before placing it on Daryl's wounds. I washed away the blood, examining the small wounds.

"It's not bad at all." I reported, feeling callouses under my soft skin. They were dry and slightly cracked, and I smiled at the way they felt in my own.

"I could'a told ya that." He snorted, and I shook my head, hiding the grin from him.

"Daryl, you don't have to be so tough all of the time. Let me take care of you sometimes." He was silent for a few moments, and I held my breath as I waited for his response.

"I ain't never had nobody to take care of me before." He told me, his voice gruff. I felt my heart ache, and I rubbed a soft spot I had discovered on his right hand.

"Well, now you have me to do that." I leaned in closely. I could see the beads of sweat on his forehead, and spot the little scars scattered on his face. They must have been from his childhood. He had told me that he was a rough child, which I could only imagine him stomping through the forest.

I heard a commotion over near the barn, and I watched as Shane practically tossed Carl out of the building. Andrea looked exasperated, and Carl looked terrified. Shane was glowering at the younger boy. I sighed, making Daryl look up. He watched the scene unfold before him before shaking his head.

"I'm goin' to do some shit. I'll be back." He told me, stomping off into the woods. He was going to the same spot he would always go off to. I had followed him from a distance before to that spot, just out of pure curiosity. He would skin animals, sharpen his arrows. Anything to keep himself busy.

I smiled as I watched his retreating figure. He was such a complicated, beautiful man. A chuckle escaped my mouth. He's probably never been called beautiful before, and I knew he wouldn't react well to the feminine word.

Dale followed the direction of Daryl, and I knew that he would be frustrated. When he wants to be alone, it would be best to leave him alone. I shook my head and grabbed the remained of the wet clothes out of the basket and began hanging them up on the line available.

Once I had finished hanging up the laundry and turning the basket upside down so the excess water could drain out of it, I heard a young voice shouting. Carl was yelling at Carol before he stomped off, leaving the woman alone and distraught.

I sighed. "Nothing is every easy in this place." I made my way over to Carol and placed my hand on her arm. "What's going on?" I asked.

Her eyes were slightly watery, but the fury on her face was prominent. "He said that Heaven was another lie." My heart sunk. They had to have been talking about Sophia. She was a very sensitive subject.

Rick and Lori made their way out of the cabin, and Carol stomped over towards them. "You need to control that boy. He's disrespectful." She said, her voice sharp. I hesitated before going over to them, passing Rick on the way. "I lost my daughter. I didn't lose my mind!" Carol explained, and Lori looked away.

"Lori, you have to understand where she's coming from right now. Carol has lost everything she has." Lori scoffed. "You've lost things, I know. We all have. But you have your family. And I have Daryl. Carol, she has .. she has no one. Carl was rude, and it was unnecessary." I left the brunette standing alone in the field, not wanting to be around her anymore. It would only frustrate me more.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Later that evening, I hung around on the porch, watching the sun set as I waited on Daryl. He came walking quickly across the field towards me, and I smiled as he stepped onto the porch. "Whatcha' smilin' fer? This isn't the time to be smilin'." He told me, and I nodded before gently grabbing ahold of his arm. He walked into the house with me still attached.

It was time for a decision to be made.

Carl tried to enter the house as well, but we all stared at him until he growled and left the room. There was a tension in the air. "How do we do this?" Rick asked. "Vote?"

Dale was disgusted by the idea of killing Randall. "Samantha? What do you think?" The older man asked me, and I gulped. I wasn't ready to be put on the spot.

"Dale, he's a danger. His group .. they're dangerous, too. They raped women and killed the men. I won't live here if he is here." I said, squeezing Daryl's arm. He was tense, and I knew that he just wanted a decision to be made.

The exasperation of Dale was obvious, and I felt bad for him. If we weren't living in this world, I would never consider killing a man. Carol's voice broke through the arguing, and I smiled at her softly. She was the voice that everyone needed to hear.

"Decide. Either of you, both of you. But leave me out." She said. Dale wasn't happy with her answer either.

The decision was made. Randall will die.

Dale left the house, not wanting to be around us anymore.

Later that night, the men took Randall out to the barn. I stayed behind at the tent, not wanting to see it. I sat there with Carol, holding her hand within mine. Everyone was silent, no one knew what to say.

We waited anxiously for a gunshot, but we heard nothing. "I'm going to find Dale." Andrea said, and I nodded at her. Daryl's face was angry as they returned, and I stood up to say something to him. I was cut off, however, by a loud scream. I looked at Daryl with panic in my face, and he grabbed his bow before sprinting off.

I was slower than Daryl, but quicker than most of the others. I sprinted forward with my flashlight, not prepared for the sight before me.

Dale lay on the ground, a walker tearing apart his torso. His screams were loud and painful, and I felt my stomach churn. Daryl reached him first, and he killed the walker. I collapsed on the ground beside him, gasping at the sight.

Hershel made his way out to the field. "He won't make it back to the house." We all cried as we watched the older man suffer.

"Someone help him. He's suffering." I screeched, embarrassed at the sound of my voice. Rick nodded before squatting down, his gun ready.

Daryl, however, took the gun from him. My eyes overflowed with tears.

"Sorry, brother." The gunshot rang out, and I closed my eyes.


	18. Chapter 18

Season two, episode 12. "Better Angels."

"Dale could get under your skin. He sure got under mine, because he wasn't afraid to say exactly what he thought, how he felt. That kind of honesty is rare and brave. Whenever I'd make a decision, I'd look at Dale. He'd be looking back at me with that look he had. We've all seen it one time or another. I couldn't always read him, but he could read us. He saw people for who they were. He knew things about us. The truth, who we really are. In the end, he was talking about losing our humanity. He said this group was broken. The best way to honor his is to unbreak it. Set aside our differences and pull together, stop feeling sorry for ourselves and take control of our lives, our safety, our future. We're not broken. We're gonna prove him wrong. From now on, we're gonna do it his way. That is how we honor Dale."

Samantha wiped tears off her cheeks as Rick finished his speech. Daryl stood beside her, face hard, hands clenched into tight fists. She gently pried one of his hands open before slipping her fingers in between his. He didn't look at her or make a sound, but she smiled softly as she felt his thumb drawing circles on the back of her hand. Everyone slowly started to disperse, and Samantha looked up at Daryl.

His blue eyes were watery, and his lip was bleeding slightly from where he was gnawing on it during Rick's speech. He was staring down at the ground, and Samantha wrapped her arms around him. "Daryl, you don't have to hold back." She told him, her voice soft. He scoffed and didn't say anything. The two stood there for what seemed like forever until Daryl finally moved to walk away.

He walked Samantha to the Greene's house and adjusted the crossbow on his back. "I'm goin' huntin'. Be back later." His voice was gruff and low, and Samantha nodded. She opened the screen door to the house when his voice stopped her. "Samantha. Thanks."

She smiled at him, her heart swelling with affection for the man standing in front of her. "Be safe, Daryl." He nodded and turned on his heel, leaving the smiling woman alone on the porch.

Daryl had arrived back just a few hours later, a few squirrels in his hands. Samantha knew that he had went to blow off steam, and she could tell by his expression that he was beginning to feel a little better. He put the squirrels down and wiped his hands on his shirt. "Rick said tha' Hershel wants us to move into the house."

Samantha raised her eyebrows. She didn't think that he would be so hospitable after what occurred the previous night at the barn, but Hershel was a man that was full of surprises. The two made their way over to the rest of the group, and Maggie gave Samantha a smile and nodded in Daryl's direction. "Gonna be tight, 15 people in one house."

"Don't worry about that. The swamp's hardening, the creek's drying up-." Hershel started to say, but Maggie cut him off. "With 50 head of cattle on the property, we might as well be ringing the damn dinner bell."

"We should've moved you in a while ago." The older man admitted, and after a moment of awkward silence, Rick spoke up and directed that the trucks be moved. Everyone seemed to spring into action. Daryl was assigned to help be on lookout with T-Dog.

"I'll stock the basement with food and water, enough that we can all survive there a few days if need be." Hershel said, and Maggie tapped Samantha on the shoulder. She was holding a few duffel bags and gestured to a crate that was on the back of the truck.

"Wanna help me out?" She asked, and Samantha grinned at her. "Of course." She grabbed the crate and walked with Maggie to the house, not noticing that Daryl was watching the way her hips swung as she walked away and how his eyes lingered on the small of her back, which was exposed when her shirt hiked up from the movement.

"How's everyone doing?" Maggie asked, and Samantha shrugged.

"About as good as expected." The farmer's daughter nodded, grabbing the screen door handle and swinging it open. She held it open with her foot so Samantha could slide in the house behind her. "Daryl is taking it hard. He's been through a lot lately, and I'm worried that he's going to snap one of these days. He holds in all of his emotions, and pretty soon he's not going to be able to hold them back anymore."

The worry in her voice was evident. "Talk to him, Sam. You're the only one here that he really talks to, so if he would tell anyone how he's feeling, he would tell you."

"I'll try to talk to him after dinner." Samantha decided, and Maggie gave her a pat on the arm. "He'll talk to you, I know he will."

Glenn walked in the house with his stuff, and Maggie nudged her friend and sent her a wink. "You can put your stuff upstairs in my room." Glenn choked on his air, his face turning pink. "With your dad in the house?" His mood changed quickly, and he moved to put his stuff in the corner of the living room. Maggie rolled her eyes, and Samantha held back a chuckle.

Samantha placed her own duffle bag in the living room, not knowing where else to set it. Everyone was spreading out in the house, finding places to sleep, but she wasn't sure where to go. She wanted to be near Daryl, but she wasn't sure how to go about it. Maybe he didn't want her to be sleeping near him every night. "Have you seen Daryl?" She asked Rick, and he gave her a smile.

"He's waiting for me on the porch. I'm gonna be a few minutes if you wanted to go ahead and keep him some company." Rick told her, and she nodded. "Thanks, Rick."

Daryl was standing on the porch, leaning against one of railings. "Hey handsome." She said, giving him a grin as she leaned against the railing beside him. He scoffed, but she saw the light dusting of a pink blush on his cheeks.

"What are you and Rick gonna do?" She asked, looking over the map that he had in his hands. "Gonna drop Randall off somewhere." He retorted, and she felt her stomach turn. The thought of him still being here made her sick, but she was terrified when she thought of Daryl being out there with him. She didn't want them to underestimate him.

"Oh." She swallowed. "Will you be here for supper?" Daryl shrugged.

"Not sure. Depends on how far we take 'im. Why?" He asked, sitting the map down and looking at her. She was chewing her lip, and he could see the unease on her face.

"Just wanted to talk to you afterwards, that's all. But I can wait until you come back, it's no problem." He eyed her carefully, and she felt embarrassed under his scrutiny. "What's wrong with ya?" He asked.

"I just-… I worry about you, Daryl. I just want you to be safe." She placed her hand on his arm. The shirt he was wearing was dirty and stained, and it felt rough under her fingertips. He didn't say anything, and his blue eyes continued to search her face for any underlying emotions. Rick opened the door then, trying to be sneaky and not ruin their moment, but the door creaked loudly and the two looked at him.

"I'm ready whenever you are." He told him, and Daryl nodded. Samantha stood on her tiptoes and kissed the corner of his mouth, placing one of her soft hands on his scuff-covered cheek. "Come find me when you get back tonight." She told him, her voice quiet. She gave Rick a gentle smile as she walked past him. "Be safe, Rick."

Samantha was sitting on the porch with Maggie, her eyes trained on Daryl. They were going to get Randall and drop him off far away from the farm. He opened the door to the barn, but when he came back out, he didn't have Randall with him. She could see the anger on his face, and she felt a shiver run down her spine.

"Something's wrong." Maggie realized, getting up and sprinting over to the barn, Samantha hot on her heels.

"The door was secured from the outside." Hershel said, closing it and gesturing to the large lock. Everyone was yelling and panicking, and Samantha didn't know what to think. There was too much going on.

"Rick! _Rick!_ " Shane came stomping out of the woods, face bloodied and anger evident in his features. "He's armed! He's got my gun!" Lori gasped, and Carl yelled out. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Little bastard just snuck up on me. Clocked me right in the face." Rick sprang into action.

"Hershel, T-Dogg, get everyone back in the house. Go! Glenn, Daryl, come with us." Everyone began jogging back to the house, filled with terror, but Samantha was frozen. T-Dogg noticed her trailing behind the rest, "Sam! Come on!" Daryl heard her name being called and turned around, cross bow in hand.

"Daryl!" She yelled, sprinting towards him. Rick was running into the woods already, and he was falling behind, but he couldn't turn his back on her. She slammed into his body hard, and her hands reached up and tangled into his hair. Her lips smashed against his hard, and he grabbed face with his hands. The two shared the embrace for a few short seconds before she pulled away. "Go. Come back to me." She turned on her heel and ran back to T-Dogg, and Daryl turned back to the trees, his heart pounding in his chest.

As soon as Samantha entered the threshold of the house, Maggie wrapped her arms around her. "They'll be okay." She told her friend, and the two sat on the couch together, finding comfort in each other's embrace.

The hours passed by slowly, and finally, the sun set. The moon was high in the sky, and Maggie had fell asleep on the couch, her body slumped over onto the cushion. Samantha gently moved away from her friend, not wanting to wake her. Lori and Carl had gone upstairs, and a few of the others were in the kitchen. Samantha stood by the window, staring out into the darkness.

A sound shot through the air, making her jump. Her heart thudded in her chest, and her blood was pumping with adrenaline. The breaths in her throat came out in quick gasp as the sound processed in her mind.

 _Gunshot._


	19. Chapter 19

Sorry that this is not an update! But, I am NOT going to be updating THIS story anymore. It will be moved under a new name, "Survival of the Fittest." I'm just not happy with the way the other story was written, so I am going to edit the previous chapters and repost them under the new story! I will revise them quickly and have them posted within the next few days so I can update new chapters.

Please, feel free to favorite and follow the new story! I will be working hard to get it up and going!

Thank you!


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